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9A I QUOTES from page 5 • • • more stormy budget battles California has ever seen. Now the hard work begins for Napa County's cities.' The Napa Valley Register, 8/04103, Disabled Hurt by Budget Cuts. "The frail, elderly, blind and those who are just plain down and out may be among the hardest hit by the budget ax that fell this week in Sacramento." The Los Angeles Times, 8/03/03, Davis Signs State Budget. "Gov. Gray Davis on Saturday signed a $99.1 - billion budget that bore faint resemblance to his original spending plan, but the Democratic gover- nor, fighting to keep his job, claimed victory over Republican efforts to cut deeply into education and health care." The Orange County Register, 8/03/03, Li" cense Fee Stomped on Gas Pedal for Recall. "Nothing in California - not the energy crisis, not the budget crisis - galvanized the attempt to recall Gov. Gray Davis more than his administration's June 20 decision to triple motorists' vehicle license fees." Legislative Bill Action NONE The following are summaries of just a few of the legislative bills that are currcitly being acted upon by the League of California Cities. For more information about these and other bills, please visit the League website's new "Issues and Advocacy" page (www.cacities.ora /, issuesandadvocacv) — a one -stop location to access information about legislation, policy issues and related developments. You can track information on bills (www.cacities.org /legtracking), locate legislators and legislative committees, send letters to legislators or the media through the online Advocacy Center, research League policy positions, access useful related links, and much more. San Diego Union Tribune, 8/3/03, Governor's Foes See Car Tax Hike as Fuel for Recall. "In a rare confluence of political events, the Oct. 7 recall election of Gov. Gray Davis became official last month just as motor vehicle owners began receiving notices that their renewal fees had tripled." The Pasadena Star News, 8/02/03, Cities Wary of State's Repayment Plan. "Faced with a $38.2 billion budget gap and stymied by Republicans' unwillingness to raise the sales tax to pay for $10.7 billion in bonds, the Legislature executed a move last week worthy of an Olympic -level gymnast: a triple - flip." San Diego Union Tribune, 8/2103, Budget Bill Grants Midyear Cut. "The $99 billion budget that Davis plans to sign today, a month after the fiscal year began July 1, contains a small step toward structural reform that gives the governor limited authority to make midyear cuts." Riverside Press Enterprise, 8/2/03, lase Blasts Higher License Fees. "Rep. Darrell Issa hopscotched the state Friday, pledging to reverse a tripling of the vehicle license fee." REVENUE AND TAXATION AB 694 (Levine). Use Tax: Vehicles. ves- sels and aircraft. A i 694 closes a use tax loophole that allows California residents to avoid use tax on expensive cars, motorhomes, planes and other vehicles if the item is purchased and used out -of -state for 90 days. The original lan- guage was amended out of the bill when it passed out of the Assembly. AB 694 will require California residents to pay use tax if the property is subject to vehicle registration or property taxes and the vehicle, boat or plane was stored or used more than half time in California during the first 12 months of ownership. Staff: Jean Korinke, Sta- tus: SenApps, Hrg. August 18, Position: Sup- port. SB 17 (Escutial. Sales and Use Taxes: Uniformity. SB 17 facilitates tracking changes in ownership of commercial property for reassess- ment purposes. Publicly traded companies would be required to file a real property statement with the Board of Equalization (BOE) starting in 2004 and in subsequent years would report property transfers with penalties for failure to do so. The BOE would forward these statements to the Visit the League's Official Web Site -- www.cacities.org PRIORITY FOCUS /PAGE 1