BILL ANALYSIS �
ACA 18
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ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
ACA 18 (Swanson)
As Amended April 30, 2012
2/3 vote
LOCAL GOVERNMENT 6-2 REVENUE & TAXATION 5-2
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|Ayes:|Alejo, Bradford, Campos, |Ayes:|Perea, Beall, Cedillo, |
| |Davis, Gordon, Hueso | |Fuentes, Gordon |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Smyth, Knight |Nays:|Harkey, Nestande |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Allows a city, county, or special district to impose,
extend, or increase a parcel tax for the purpose of funding the
maintenance or improvement of fire protection or police
protection services with approval by a majority of voters in
that city, county, or special district. Specifically, this
bill :
1)Allows for the imposition, extension, or increase of a parcel
tax on real property by a city, county, or special district,
for the purpose of funding the maintenance or improvement of
fire protection services or police protection services, or
both, by approval of a majority of the voters in the city,
county, or special district voting on the proposition.
2)Defines "parcel tax" to mean a special tax imposed upon a
parcel of real property at a rate that is determined without
regard to that property's value.
3)Makes technical and conforming changes to other provisions in
the California Constitution.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Authorizes cities, counties, and special districts to impose a
general tax for general governmental purposes with the
approval of a majority of voters.
2)Authorizes cities, counties, and special districts to impose a
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special tax for specified purposes with the approval of
two-thirds of the voters.
3)Authorizes school districts, community college districts, or
county offices of education to incur school bonded
indebtedness with the approval of 55% of the voters voting on
the bond measure, requires bond proceeds only be used for
purposes specified in the Constitution, and requires an audit
to ensure that the funds have been expended only on the
specific projects listed.
FISCAL EFFECT : None
COMMENTS : Article XIII A of the California Constitution allows
cities, counties, and special districts, by a two-thirds vote of
the qualified electors in that jurisdiction, to impose special
taxes, except ad valorem taxes on real property or a transaction
tax or sales tax on the sale of real property within that city,
county or special district.
This bill allows, in spite of Article XIII A, for the
imposition, extension, or increase of a parcel tax on real
property by a city or county, for the purpose of funding the
maintenance or improvement of fire protection services or police
protection services, or both, by approval
of a majority of the voters in the city or county voting on the
proposition. The bill defines a "parcel tax" to mean a special
tax that is imposed upon a parcel of real property at a rate
that is determined without regard to that property's value, and
makes other conforming changes to the California Constitution.
This bill is an author-sponsored measure.
A parcel tax is a particular type of excise tax that is based on
either a flat per-parcel rate or a rate that varies depending
upon use, size, and/or number of units on each parcel.
Proposition 13 contained a 1% limit on ad valorem property tax;
therefore, a parcel tax based upon the value of property would
constitute a violation of Proposition 13. The California
Constitution specifies that only two types of taxes may be
imposed upon a parcel of property: first, an ad valorem
property tax imposed pursuant to Article VIII and Article XIII
A, and second, a special tax receiving two-thirds voter approval
pursuant to Section 4 of Article XIII A. The result is that a
parcel tax must be adopted as a special tax.
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The author notes that "since 2008, state and local governments
have faced multi-billion dollar budget shortfalls. Local
governments across the state have implemented cuts in
core-public services including public safety to accommodate the
falling revenues. As a result, firefighters and police officers
faced a record number of layoffs. Fire departments are also
increasingly relying on hiring freezes, reductions in salaries
and benefits, and 'brown-outs,' a technique to eliminate
permanent personnel and replace them with relief or overtime
personnel. The risks posed by these cuts are passed on to the
citizens, who have seen an increase in response time, fewer
investigation and patrol units, and station closures. ACA 18
allows local communities to impose a parcel tax by a majority
approval of the voters for the purpose of funding, maintaining
or improving fire and police services."
Lowering the constitutional vote threshold for special taxes and
bond indebtedness has been tried several times in past years.
ACA 7 (Nation) of 2005, would have lowered the constitutional
vote requirement from two-thirds to 55% for any special tax.
ACA 10 (Feuer) of 2008, would have created an additional
exception to the 1% ad valorem property tax for transportation
projects with 55% voter approval. There were several measures
introduced in the 2009-10 session that would have revised
constitutional voting thresholds for different purposes,
including ACA 10 (Torlakson), ACA 15 (Arambula), SCA 12 (Kehoe),
ACA 9 (Huffman), and SCA 6 (Simitian), none of which were
enacted.
Support arguments: The Peace Officers Research Association of
California writes that "in these times of budget deficits,
layoffs, and cutbacks, we need all options on the table for
raising the funds necessary to keep our communities safe."
Opposition arguments: CalTax writes that "a two-thirds vote
requirement on taxes ensures that no group or individual
dominates quitter voices in a democracy?ACA 18 makes it easier
for individuals or groups to exert their political will over the
well-being of all individuals in a given jurisdiction."
Analysis Prepared by : Debbie Michel / L. GOV. / (916)
319-3958
ACA 18
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FN: 0004137