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LEG ACTION DAYS from page 1 Assemblymember John Laird, chairman of the Assembly Budget Committee, will talk what about the state budget means for cities in light of the latest revenue projections. The May revision to the budget is expected to be released on Friday, May 13. //! -~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Also addressing city officials on Wednesday will be Senate Minority Leader Dick Ackerman, chair- man of the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee Tom Torlakson, and Pat Dando, director of Local Government Outreach for the governor and a former San Jose city councilwoman and League board member. On Thursday, city officials will hear from Lucy Dunn, director of the Department of Housing and Community Development and Will Kempton, direc- tor of the Department of Transportation. A reception for city officials and their legislators will be held at the Sheraton Grand Hotel Wednes- day evening, from 5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. 'Telling the City Story' With One Voice The two-day Legislative Action Days event provides city officials with a powerful opportunity to "tell the city story" to their elected state representa- tives. The coordinated lobbying by large numbers of city officials is timed to coincide with the release of the new budget estimates and the governor's May revision to his January budget proposal. With additional revenues possibly available, the League will be urging city officials to press their representa- tives for restoration of Prop 42 funding for local street and road maintenance (see "League Urges Restoration of Prop 42 Funding"). City officials will also be urged to talk to their legislators about housing issues and the need to protect redevelopment. League President Pat Eklund and League Executive Director Chris McKenzie will provide briefings on each of these issues. Regional Reps Coordinating Meetings The League's regional representatives have scheduled meetings with legislators for each division. City officials planning on attending the event should contact their regional representative, Background materials and talking points will also be available to assist in the legislative meetings. This all-important city lobbying event is free to all city officials. Registration and housing informa- tion is available on the League website. PROP 42 from page 1 .............. The governor and his staff are currently work- ing with the Department of Finance on the May revision to his January budget proposal. There are growing indications that the state's income tax receipts may be hundreds of millions of dollars more than anticipated - perhaps as much as a billion or more. While there will likely be many demands on these dollars, both the governor and State Finance Department Director Tom Campbell have recently stated their interest in devoting some of the increased revenues to both education and transportation. For transportation this can be accomplished by restoring funding of Prop 42 with the sales tax on gasoline. Specifically, we urge that the governor and legislators to: . Support the full application of revenue from sales tax on gasoline for transportation purposes as provided in Prop 42, including for local street and road maintenance and public transit, consis- tent with the current Prop 42 allocation formula. . Support a permanent and protected shift of the sales tax on gasoline for transportation pur- poses. . Support an obligated repayment of previ- ously suspended Prop 42 funds with interest. Why Make This Request At This Time We believe that there is a strong case to be made in support of increased funding for transpor- tation, and particularly for local street and road maintenance. For example: Local streets and roads urgently need Continued on Page 6 Visit the League's Official Websiteuwww.cacities.org PRIORITY FOCUS/PAGE 5