3,620 / 69.5% Yes votes ...... 1,590 / 30.5% No votes

See Also: Index of all Measures

Meaning of Voting Yes/No

A YES vote of this measure means:

A majority "yes" vote would establish a business license tax of 5% of gross revenues on operators of commercial parking facilities.

A NO vote of this measure means:

A "no" vote means the 5% business license tax on operators of commercial parking facilities would not be established.

The proposed measure exempts from the tax:

1) a parking facility that is not the predominant use of the parcel on which the facility is located, such as a hotel, condominium, apartment, or shopping center;

2) a parking facility that is used by a business to park or store only the business' own vehicles, such as a corporation yard; and

3) a parking facility that is used by a business to park or store only vehicles that are in the business' own inventory for purposes of sale, lease, or resale, such as a car dealer's storage lot.

The City estimates that the tax would generate approximately $260,000 per year, which would go into the City's general fund for general government purposes, including capital improvements, in the City. The tax would be paid on a quarterly basis based on parking revenues from the quarter.

Because under the proposed measure, the tax revenue would be put into the City's general fund for general City government purposes, a majority vote of the City's voters voting in this election is required to approve the measure. Because the tax would be adopted by a vote of the people, the tax rate could not be increased except by another vote of the people.

For information about the City of Burlingame

City of Burlingame Fact Sheet on Measures O, P and Q

Approval of Measure Q will ensure that the current parking tax measure in the City of Burlingame is applied uniformly to all parking businesses that provide parking as their primary business. It is designed to not impact businesses who may charge or pay to park vehicles, but whose primary business is other than parking vehicles. Business such as hotels and car dealers, who may collect or pay fees for parking, already pay taxes to fund city services through hotel and sales taxes. Burlingame's proximity to the airport and the soon to be completed BART station means that we are likely to be even further impacted by parking facilities. It is only fair that those business pay their share of the cost of the public infrastructure and services provided by the City of Burlingame. Vote Yes on Measure Q.

/s/ Rosalie M. O'Mahony
Burlingame Council Member and Past Mayor

/s/ Mike Coffey
Burlingame City Council Member

/s/ Frank Pagliaro
Former Burlingame Mayor and Council Member

/s/ Vic Mangini
Former Burlingame Mayor and Council Member

/s/ Ross Bruce
Broadway Merchant

This ordinance is proposed by the City Council of the City of Burlingame to establish a business license tax of five percent on operators of commercial parking facilities.

PROPOSED ORDINANCE

THE PEOPLE OF THE CITY OF BURLINGAME DO ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:

Section 1. Section 6.08.085 is adopted to read as follows:

6.08.085 Operators of commercial parking facilities

(a) Commercial parking facility defined. "Commercial parking facility" means any privately owned or operated facility that provides, for any form of consideration, parking or storage for motor vehicles, motorcycles, trailers, bicycles, or other similar means of conveyance for passengers or property. "Commercial parking facility" does not include a parking facility that is:

(i) Not the predominant use of the parcel on which the parking facility is located; or

(ii) Leased or owned by a business and operated exclusively to park or store vehicles that are owned or leased by that same business; or

(iii) Leased or owned by a business and operated exclusively to park or store vehicles that are part of that same business' inventory for purposes of sale, lease, or resale.

(b) Operator defined. "Operator" means any person who, as owner, lessee, employee, agent, or otherwise, operates, maintains, manages, keeps, permits, or allows to be operated, maintained, managed, or keep any commercial parking facility in or upon any premises owned, leased, managed, operated, or controlled by such person within the city.

(c) The operator of a commercial parking facility in the city shall pay an annual license tax of five percent (5%) of the gross receipts received from the operation of the commercial parking facility without deduction therefrom.

(d) Each operator of a facility shall, on or before the last day of the month following the close of each calendar quarter, or at the close of any shorter reporting period which may be established by the license collector, make a return to the license collector, on forms provided by the collector of the total tax. At the time the return is filed, the full amount of the tax shall be remitted to the license collector. The license collector may establish shorter reporting periods for any operator if the collector deems it necessary in order to insure timely collection of the tax; and the collector may also require further information in the return. Returns and payments are due immediately upon cessation of business for any reason.

Section 2. This ordinance shall be considered adopted on the date that the City Council declares the vote, and shall go into effect ten (10) days thereafter.