Agenda Item Title:
Title
Council Budget Visioning Workshop.
Body
Description/Background:
Although the Mayor and City Council have recently completed the FY 2018-19 Budget, now is the time to begin thinking about the FY 2019-20 budget process. Given the significant investments recently accomplished with public safety compensation, the City Council should begin considering how a change to the property tax would impact the City's ability to maintain or increase services in future years. "Budget season" usually commences with a budget retreat in January or February. However, the Council Office recommends that a structured discussion of the property tax occur throughout the next six months. The goal of the ongoing discussion would be to generate consensus on whether or not a property tax increase should be a component of the FY 2019-20 Budget before "budget season" is officially upon us. The goal of this agenda item is to solicit feedback on the types of information the Council and Administration desire to explore with regard to the property tax. For example, the Council Office has scheduled a consultant to brief the Council on property tax mechanics such as taxable versus fair market value, the residential exemption, types of assessments, calculation of the certified rate, and changes in value. The Council Office is also preparing an analysis of the nominal versus real (inflation adjusted) value of the City's property tax, and measures of the economic impact on taxpayers. Other items of interest to the Council might include an update of the long-term financial analysis, costs associated with the facilities master plan, and whether City departments are sufficiently staffed to provided expected service levels. A public outreach plan to solicit feedback and provide education may also be an important component. To be clear, this discussion is not about whether one favors or disfavors property tax. The question is what information and shared understanding i...
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