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Measure G2008 Ordinance Reducing Utility Tax City of Santa Barbara Majority Approval Required
See Also:
Index of all Measures |
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League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
Pass:
26206 /
70.98% Yes votes ......
10713 /
29.02% No votes
| Results as of Dec 2 1:22pm, 99.9% of Precincts Reporting (318/57) |
| Information shown below: Official Information | Impartial Analysis | Arguments | | |||||
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Shall Santa Barbara adopt an ordinance reducing the telecommunications utility users tax from 6% to 5.75%, to fund police, fire, 911, parks/recreation, gang prevention and after school programs for at-risk youth, senior services, street repairs, public transit, and other general fund services; exempting low-income seniors; prohibiting a tax rate increase without voter approval; requiring equal treatment of taxpayers regardless of technology, annual audits, public review of expenditures and local control of all revenue?
Tax Reduction and Modernization Ordinance" Since 1970, the city of Santa Barbara has imposed a local tax known as the "Utility Users Tax" (or "UUT") on the use of telephones and Cable TV video services. The amount of Santa Barbara's UUT is currently six percent (6%) of a customer's monthly bill for these types of services. If approved by the voters, Measure G would enact a City ordinance which amends the City's 1970's era UUT ordinance with a modern "telecommunication and video services" ordinance. The new ordinance would also reduce the rate of the UUT on these services from 6% to 5.75%. The modernized technical definitions in the Measure G ordinance would apply to all types of telecommunication regardless of whether the communication is intrastate, interstate, or international and regardless of the technology used to provide such communications. New telecommunication services would include paging, text messaging, and private communication services (T-1 line). The new ordinance would not apply to charges for internet services, including digital downloads like music, games, and ringtones. Santa Barbara's existing UUT ordinance, like many similar municipal UUT ordinances throughout California, was written before the introduction of the new telecommunications and video technologies, such as cellular phones, private network communications, voice-over-internet telephone services (VoIP), and IP-video. Santa Barbara's existing ordinance was also written before changes occurred to federal law such as the Mobile telecommunications Sourcing Act of 2000 and a change in Internal Revenue Service regulations concerning how the Federal Excise Tax (the "FET") applies to long-distance phone service charges. UUT ordinances enacted by other California cities which contain provisions referring to the FET (similar to that in Santa Barbara's current UUT ordinance) have faced legal challenges to the manner in which they collect their UUT. If approved by the voters, Measure G ordinance would allow Santa Barbara's UUT ordinance to be revised and updated in order to avoid having Santa Barbara face similar legal challenges. Measure G also expands and clarifies the City's tax collection procedures and the process for appealing tax calculations. Measure G would provide an annual verification by third party auditors that the tax has been properly collected and that all UUT revenues have been properly expended by the City. Measure G would continue the existing City ordinance's provisions for low income exemptions from the UUT. Measure G would not amend the City's UUT on gas, electricity, water, waste water, or trash services. Based on figures from the City's 2008 fiscal year, Santa Barbara receives about $5.4 million a year in UUT revenues on telephone and Cable TV services. It uses half of these UUT revenues to support City general fund governmental services, such as police protection, fire fighting, and library services. It uses the other half of the UUT revenues to maintain the City street system.
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City Council Discussions on Measure G2008
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| Arguments For Measure G2008 | Arguments Against Measure G2008 | ||
| Santa Barbara police officers, firefighters, business and civic leaders, seniors, parents and citizens throughout our community urge you to Vote Yes on G.
Yes on G reduces the existing Telecommunications Utility Users Tax, from 6% to
. Police, fire, and 911 emergency communications Yes on G continues funding for youth programs that serve thousands in our community. Yes on G continues funding for anti-gang and anti-drug programs in local schools, and after-school activities, recreational program and summer camps to keep kids off the streets and out of trouble. Measure G is not a new tax. For almost 40 years, the current tax has helped ensure that our police and firefighters are there when we need them, and funded road repairs, youth and senior programs and other vital community services. However, the existing ordinance was enacted before the introduction of many modern telecommunication technologies. Yes on G simply replaces the existing ordinance with one that is consistent with new federal and state law, and modernizes definitions to close loopholes and ensure equal treatment for all taxpayers. Without Yes on G the City may have no choice but to cut services. Yes on G specifically exempts Internet access service charges, continues the existing exemption for low-income individuals, and prohibits any future rate increase without voter approval. Yes on G requires that every penny raised stays in our city and gives local residents control over how our local money is spent. Please Vote Yes on G. Cam Sanchez, Chief of Police, City of Santa Barbara Pat McElroy, Santa Barbara City Firefighters Association Hal Conklin, Executive, Southern California Edison Former Mayor, City of Santa Barbara Beebe Longstreet, Chair, Park and Recreation Commission, City of Santa Barbara
Many city employees are now able to take every other Friday off, and most city employees may retire between ages 50 and 55-with a pension almost equivalent to final sala and benefits for life. Proponents of Measure G represent the will of the City of Santa Barbara's public employee unions and bureaucracy. They have, in their misleading `pro' statement, cherrypicked positive city services that almost everyone supports. It is as true to say that proceeds from Measure G would go to the following activities as it is to say they would support the causes proponents enumerate:
Proponents inflate the funds Measure G would bring to the city. Measure G would only be a tax on new long-distance calls---the city would continue to receive revenue from local calls. In fact, the amount of revenue the city would receive from the new telecommunications tax would equal less than 1.5 percent of total city spending, less than one-half of a typical year's increase in revenue. College students in particular should be aware that Measure G would tax cell phone use, aping, and text messaging. Vote No on G. | Santa Barbarans who believe that new technologies should not be taxed should vote No on Measure G.
Measure G is an attempt to tax cell phones and other new technologies by the City of Santa Barbara, The City of Santa Barbara has presented no compelling argument that the funds that would be obtained by Measure G are vital to city services. Indeed, in recent years, the amount of revenue the city taxes and otherwise receives has increased significantly, with little to show for it. For too long, the City of Santa Barbara has increased taxes and fees for frivolous projects and unnecessary expenditures. The funds from Measure G would not be used for important city services. They would be used for unnecessary city spending. New technologies such as cell phones should be encouraged, not taxed. Much of the economic effectiveness of the internet is that it is currently untaxed. Measure G would create many problems in implementation. Once local cell phone providers were taxed, would this lead local residents to seek providers for new communicative technologies from outside of the area? How would, for example, out-of- state communicative technology providers be taxed by the City of Santa Barbara? If individuals were passing through Santa Barbara, would their cell phone calls be taxed while they were in the city? Measure G would be a 5.75% tax on utilities in the City of Santa Barbara. Many cities do not have a utility users tax. Especially at a time when the price of energy has skyrocketed, it is not the time for the City of Santa Barbara to implement a new utility users tax. Vote No on Measure G. Vote against unnecessary taxes. Jan Evans Chris Hartman Tom Baniga Wayne Reddoch
The opponents of Measure G mislead voters with inaccurate, exaggerated. statements and offer no solutions to address the true needs of our community. Police, Fire, 911 emergency communications, and gang prevention programs are NOT "frivolous services" Measure G is not a new tax. It simply maintains existing funding for vital community services. Over 150 Cities in California currently collect utility users taxes and have had no problems with implementation. The Federal Mobile Telecommunications Sourcing and Privacy Act, which was passed by Congress eight years ago, addresses all of the speculative questions on implementation raised by the opponents of Measure G. Yes on G will reduce the current tax on cell phones and other new telecommunication technologies, and prohibits any taxes on internet connection fees. Yes on G is fiscally responsible. It requires that all the funds collected remain in our community. Yes on G requires public audits and public review of how all the funds are spent. <bVote Yes on G to maintain local funding for vital community services including:
. Police, fire and 911 emergency communications Please join police officers, firefighters, business and civie leaders, seniors, parents and citizens throughout our community: Vote Yes on G. For a complete list of endorsements and more information, visit: http://www.YesOnG.net. Cam Sanchez, Chief of Police, City of Santa Barbara Mike McGrew. Santa Barbara Police Officers Association Hal Conklin, Executive, Southern California Edison Former Mayor, City of Santa Barbara Beebe Longstreet, Chair, Park and Recreation Commission, City of Santa Barbara |
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Created: January 24, 2009 10:38 PST
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