HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Resolution 14070 (Library Parcel Tax)RESOLUTION NO. 14070
RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL:
1) CALLING A SPECIAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION TO BE HELD ON
TUESDAY, JUNE 7,2016; AND
2) ORDERING THE SUBMISSION OF A PROPOSITION OF LEVYING
A SPECIAL LIBRARY SERVICES PARCEL TAX TO THE
QUALIFIED VOTERS OF THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL AT THE
SPECIAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION TO BE HELD ON JUNE 7,2016;
AND
3) REQUESTING CONSOLIDATION WITH ANY OTHER ELECTION
CONDUCTED ON THE SAME DATE; AND
4) REQUESTING ELECTION SERVICES BY THE REGISTRAR OF
VOTERS; AND
5) REQUESTING THE CITY ATTORNEY TO PREPARE AN
IMPARTIAL ANALYSIS OF THE MEASURE.
WHEREAS, the Charter of the City of San Rafael, Article IV, Section 1, authorizes the
City Council to call a special municipal election; and
WHEREAS, community use of the Library has been continually increasing for decades,
with particularly significant increases in several measures of usage, including circulation and
attendance; and
WHEREAS, the renewal of a local parcel tax dedicated to public library services and
facilities would augment the capacity of the City of San Rafael to provide quality library services
to its residents, over and above the proportional amount of the City's general fund currently
allocated to the Library; and
WHEREAS, the City Council has determined to call a special municipal election to be
held on June 7, 2016, to submit to the voters a ballot measure proposing the adoption of an
ordinance amending the Municipal Code of the City of San Rafael to renew a Special Library
Services Parcel Tax within the City for library services; and
WHEREAS, under the proposed measure, the per parcel tax would increase from $49 to
$59 per year (slightly more for multi -unit residential parcels) and would increase annually
commensurate with the annual percentage increase to the San Francisco -Oakland -San Jose Price
Index for All Urban Consumers ("CPI"), not to exceed 3% annually; and
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of San Rafael may request the Board of
Supervisors of the County of Marin to consolidate the special municipal election with any other
election conducted on the same date; and
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of San Rafael may request election services by
the Registrar of Voters of Marin County, California.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that pursuant to the requirements of the
laws of the State of California there is called and ordered held in the City of San Rafael, County
of Marin, State of California, on Tuesday, June 7, 2016, a special municipal election of the
qualified electors of San Rafael, for the purpose of submitting to the electors of the City a
proposition of levying a Special Library Services Parcel Tax.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that there shall be submitted to the voters of the City at
the special municipal election to be held on June 7, 2016 the proposition attached hereto as
Attachment "A" and incorporated herein by reference, to be known and referred to as the "SAN
RAFAEL SPECIAL LIBRARY SERVICES PARCEL TAX MEASURE" or as "Measure_".
[designation to be assigned by County Registrar of Voters]
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that pursuant to Section 13247 of the Elections Code,
the Council hereby directs the Registrar of Voters to use the following abbreviation of the tax
proposition on the ballot:
"To provide a critical, consistent, locally -controlled funding source, YES
augmenting current general fund allocations for the San Rafael Public Library NO
to maintain library hours, equipment, materials, and services for children,
teens, and adults, shall the City of San Rafael be authorized to levy an annual
$59 parcel tax (slightly higher for multiple -residential unit parcels) for a period
of nine (9) years with annual CPI adjustment, oversight by an independent
citizens committee and exemptions for senior citizens?"
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Registrar of Voters of the County is hereby
requested to reprint the full text of the proposition, which is all that portion of this Resolution set
forth in Attachment "A", in the voter information pamphlet to be distributed to voters pursuant to
Section 13307 of the Elections Code. In the event the full text of the proposition is not reprinted
in the voter information pamphlet, the Registrar of Voters is hereby requested to print,
immediately below the impartial analysis of the tax proposition, in no less than 10 -point boldface
type, a legend substantially as follows:
"The above statement is an impartial analysis of Measure _. If you desire a
copy of the measure, please call the San Rafael City Clerk at 415-485-3065
and a copy will be mailed at no cost to you."
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board of Supervisors of the County of Marin is
hereby requested to:
1) Consolidate said election with any other election conducted on the same day; and
2) Authorize and direct the Registrar of Voters, at City expense, to provide the following
election services and to canvass the results of said election:
• Provide Voter Indexes
• Provide Voter Count by Precinct
• Provide Drayage and Rental of Polling Places
• Provide Printing of Sample and Official Ballots
• Provide Printing of Measures and Arguments
• Appoint and Notify Election Officers
• Mail Sample Ballots and Polling Place Notification
• Provide Precinct Supplies
• Provide Training of Precinct Workers
• Provide Processing of Vote by Mail Ballots
• Provide Central Counting
• Provide Canvass of Votes Cast
• Provide such other services as are necessary to conduct the Special Municipal
Election
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that:
1) The ballots to be used at the election shall be in both form and content as required by law.
2) The polls for said election shall be opened at seven o'clock (7:00 a.m.) on the day of said
election and shall remain open continuously from said time until eight o'clock (8:00 p.m.)
of the same day when said polls shall be closed, except as provided in Section 14401 of
the Elections Code of the State of California.
3) In all the particulars not recited in this Resolution, the election shall be held and
conducted as provided by law for holding municipal elections in said City.
4) Notice of the time and place of holding the election is hereby given and the City Clerk is
hereby authorized, instructed and directed to give such further or additional notice of said
election in time, form, and manner as required by law.
5) Pursuant to Elections Code section 9285, the City Council of the City of San Rafael
hereby directs the City Clerk to accept rebuttal arguments submitted to the Clerk within
ten (10) days after the final date for filing direct arguments.
6) Pursuant to California Elections Code Section 9280, the City Council of the City of San
Rafael hereby directs the City Attorney to prepare an impartial analysis of said ballot
Measure.
7) The City of San Rafael recognizes that additional costs will be incurred by the County by
reason of this consolidation and agrees to reimburse the County for any costs.
8) This Resolution shall be effective immediately upon its adoption by the City Council.
9) The City Clerk is directed to submit a certified copy of this Resolution to the Board of
Supervisors of the County of Marin.
I, ESTHER C. BEIRNE, Clerk of the City of San Rafael, hereby certify that the foregoing
Resolution was duly and regularly introduced and adopted at a regfilar meeting of the City
Council of said City held on Tuesday, the 16th day of February. 2016 by the following vote, to
wit:
AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: Bushey, Colin, McCullough & Mayor Phillips
NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS: None
ABSENT: COUNCILMEMBERS: Gamblin
ESTHER C. BEIRNE, City Clerk
FULL TEXT OF MEASURE
ORDINANCE NO.
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL AMENDING
CHAPTER 3.36 OF THE SAN RAFAEL MUNICIPAL CODE
EXTENDING, REVISING AND INCREASING THE EXISTING
SPECIAL LIBRARY SERVICES PARCEL TAX SUBJECT TO
APPROVAL OF TWO-THIRDS OF THE ELECTORS VOTING
ON THE TAX MEASURE AT THE GENERAL MUNICIPAL
ELECTION TO BE HELD ON TUESDAY, JUNE 7, 2016
The City Council of the City of San Rafael hereby makes the following findings in
connection with the adoption of this Ordinance:
DIVISION 1.
WHEREAS, in 2010, the San Rafael community voted in favor of Measure C, adding
Chapter 3.36 to the San Rafael Municipal Code establishing a local special parcel tax dedicated
to public library services and facilities as authorized by Government Code section 53717; and
WHEREAS, the City has used these funds for a number of purposes, including staffing,
providing, maintaining and improving hours of operation, services, equipment, and materials at
the San Rafael Public Library; providing and improving programs and materials for children,
teens, adults, seniors, literacy learners and people with disabilities at the San Rafael Public
Library; and
WHEREAS, given the fiscal challenges that all cities have faced in recent years,
Measure C proved essential for maintaining necessary library services in San Rafael; and
WHEREAS, Measure C funding is scheduled to expire, and if the City were to address
this loss of locally -controlled funding with expenditure reductions alone it would have to
consider cuts to open hours at the Pickleweed and Downtown libraries, book and periodical
purchases, licensed digital resources and eBooks, and outreach to schools; and
WHEREAS, after study of the financial issues facing the City, and following numerous
discussions with residents, neighborhood associations and business and service groups, and after
extensive efforts to gauge the public's opinions and priorities through several surveys of San
Rafael residents, the City Council has determined that the most prudent, reasonable and
financially responsible action it can take to preserve an adequate level of library services is to
place before the voters a ballot measure to extend the existing special library parcel tax for a
period of 9 years, and to recommend its adoption to the voters; and
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WHEREAS, if the extended and increased special parcel tax is approved by the voters at
the municipal election on June 7, 2016, the existing tax will remain in effect until June 30, 2017,
and the extended and increased tax will become effective on July 1, 2017;
NOW THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of San Rafael does hereby Ordain as
follows:
DIVISION 2.
Chapter 3.36 of the San Rafael Municipal Code is hereby amended to read in its entirety
as follows:
Chapter 3.36
SPECIAL LIBRARY SERVICES PARCEL TAX
3.36.010 -- Purposes.
This Chapter is adopted to achieve the following, among other purposes, and the City
Council directs that the provisions hereof be interpreted in order to accomplish those purposes:
A. To staff, provide, and maintain hours of operation, services, equipment, and
materials at the San Rafael Public Library; and
B. To provide programs and materials for children, teens, adults, seniors, literacy
learners and people with disabilities at the San Rafael Public Library.
3.36.020 -- Definitions.
As used in this Chapter:
A. "Library" means the San Rafael Public Library;
B. "Living unit" means an individual dwelling space intended for occupancy by one
or more persons, and shall specifically include a manufactured home/mobilehome as defined in
section 20.04.020H of this Code.
C. "Parcel" means any parcel of land, vacant, or improved, and wholly or partially
located within the City of San Rafael, for which the County Assessor of Marin County has
assigned an assessor's identification number for purposes of property tax collection.
D. "Single family residential parcel" means any parcel that is determined by the City
of San Rafael from records on file with the County of Marin or the City of San Rafael to be used
or zoned to allow for a single primary living unit, regardless whether such parcel may be
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designated on the rolls of the County Assessor as "subject to exemption," and may include an
attached single family residence such as a condominium, townhouse or stock cooperative.
E. "Multifamily residential parcel" means any parcel used or zoned for multiple
living units as determined by the City of San Rafael from records on file with the County of
Marin or the City of San Rafael, and including but not limited to parcels designated on the rolls
of the Marin County Assessor as used for multiple family or duplex residential use, and such
parcels that may be designated for multiple manufactured homes/mobilehomes, or as "subject to
exemption."
F. "Nonresidential parcel" means any parcel that is not a "single family residential
parcel" or a "multifamily residential parcel" or an "other residential parcel" as defined herein.
G. "Other residential parcel" means any parcel other than a "single family residential
parcel" or "multifamily residential parcel" that is improved with or zoned to allow one or more
living units as determined by the City of San Rafael from records on file with the County of
Marin or the City of San Rafael, including but not limited to a parcel with mixed residential and
other use, a parcel with a "second dwelling unit" as defined in section 14.03.030 of this Code,
and a parcel that may be designated for multiple manufactured homes/mobilehomes, and
regardless whether such parcel may be designated on the rolls of the Marin County Assessor as
"subject to exemption," commercial, or industrial.
H. "Tax" means the Special Library Services Parcel Tax imposed under the
provisions of this Chapter.
3.36.030 -- Imposition of Tax.
An annual Special Library Services Parcel Tax is hereby imposed pursuant to City
Charter and Government Code section 53717 on each parcel within the City of San Rafael for the
purposes set forth in this Chapter, at the following rates:
Single family residential parcel:
Multifamily residential parcel or
Other residential parcel:
Nonresidential parcel:
Fifty-nine dollars ($59) per parcel.
Fifty-nine dollars ($59) per parcel plus Ten
dollars ($10) per living unit in excess of one,
up to a maximum tax of $1,000 per year per
parcel.
Fifty-nine dollars ($59) per parcel.
The foregoing tax rates shall be adjusted annually after the 2017-2018 fiscal year,
commensurate with the annual percentage increase, if any, in the previous fiscal year to the San
Francisco -Oakland -San Jose Price Index for All Urban Consumers ("CPP'), not to exceed 3%
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annually. In no event shall such adjustment cause the foregoing tax rates to be adjusted
downward.
3.36.040 — Term.
The Special Library Services Parcel Tax imposed by this Chapter shall be levied annually
for nine (9) years commencing in fiscal year 2017-2018.
3.36.050 -- Proceeds of Tax; Accountability Measures.
All proceeds of the Special Library Services Parcel Tax imposed and levied pursuant to
this Chapter shall be deposited into a separate "Special Library Services Parcel Tax" account to
be used exclusively locally for the Library for the purposes set forth in this Chapter. The City's
Finance Director shall prepare an annual report pursuant to Government Code Section 50075.3.
3.36.060 — Persons Liable for Tax; Collection of Tax.
The tax imposed by this Chapter is not an ad valorem tax on property. The tax imposed
by this Chapter is due from every person who is the owner of a parcel within the City of San
Rafael, as reflected upon the rolls of the County Assessor of Marin County, unless that person or
parcel is otherwise exempted by this Chapter. The Marin County Tax Collector shall collect the
tax in the same manner and subject to the same penalties as County property taxes are collected.
The full amount due under this Chapter shall constitute a debt to the City. An action for the
collection of any amount due may be commenced in the name of the City in any court having
jurisdiction of the cause.
3.36.070 — Exclusions and Exemptions.
A. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as imposing a tax upon any person
where imposition of such tax upon that person would be in violation of either the United States
Constitution or the California State Constitution or other applicable law.
B. The tax imposed by this chapter shall not be levied in any tax year upon any
federal, state or local governmental entity.
C. Any owner of a single family residential parcel, as defined herein, used solely for
owner -occupied single-family residential purposes who has attained, or will have attained, the
age of 65 years or older prior to July 1 of the tax year, may obtain an exemption from the Special
Library Services Parcel Tax for that parcel upon approval of an application of such owner
submitted to the Library Director or his or her designee. Any one application from a qualified
applicant will provide an exemption for the parcel for the remaining term of the tax so long as
such applicant continues to own and use the parcel as his or her principal residence.
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3.36.080 -- Independent Resident Oversight.
Within 60 days after the effective date of this Chapter, the City Council shall establish a
Special Library Parcel Tax Committee to review the collection and expenditure of tax revenues
collected under the authority of this Chapter. The Committee shall consist of at least five
members, who shall be residents of the City. The terms of the Committee members and their
specific duties shall be established by resolution of the City Council.
DIVISION 3:
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held
to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance.
The Council hereby declares that it would have adopted the Ordinance and each section, subsection,
sentence, clause or phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections,
subsections, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared invalid.
DIVISION 4:
This ordinance levying the tax described herein shall be effective ten days after the date
on which the City Council has declared its approval by at least two-thirds of the City's electors
voting at the special municipal election to be held on Tuesday, June 7, 2016; and the Special
Library Services Parcel Tax so established shall be levied annually for nine (9) years, beginning
in fiscal year 2017-2018 and shall thereafter expire unless extended with the approval of two-
thirds of the electors voting upon the extension at a general or special municipal election.
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