DATE: March 1, 2016
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Assistant City Manager
SUBJECT
Title
Adoption of a Resolution Placing Renewal of the Utility User Tax (UUT) on the June 2016 Ballot
End
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
That Council takes the following actions to place renewal of the Utility User Tax (UUT) measure on the June 2016 ballot, levying a 5.5% tax on the use of electricity, gas, telecommunications, and video services before the voter of Hayward:
1) Adopts a Resolution approving the ballot statement and full text of the measure (the proposed Ordinance, Exhibit A of Attachment I) as it will appear on the ballot and requesting the Alameda County Board of Supervisors to authorize the County Clerk and Registrar of Voters to provide election services and canvass the returns (Attachment I); and
2) Directing the City Attorney to Develop an Impartial Analysis of the measure.
Body
SUMMARY
The Utility Users Tax (UUT) was approved by Hayward voters as part of a special election in May of 2009 as a means of protecting critical City services in the wake of the devastating impacts of the Great Recession. The UUT is a 5.5% tax on the use of electricity, natural gas, telecommunications (including traditional telephone service, long distance service and cellular phone service), and video/cable television services. The tax was initially adopted with a ten-year sunset clause, meaning that the tax is set to expire in 2019, unless renewed by the voters. The action recommended in this report would place a measure on the June 2016 ballot to renew the UUT at its current rate for a period of twenty years, beginning after the sunset of the current tax (Measure A) and expiring in 2039.
BACKGROUND
The Utility Users Tax (UUT) was approved by Hayward voters as part of a special election in May of 2009 as a means of protecting critical city services in the wake of the devastating impacts of the G...
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