CITY OF ALBANY CITY COUNCIL AGENDA STAFF REPORT

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1 CITY OF ALBANY CITY COUNCIL AGENDA STAFF REPORT Agenda Date: July 16, 2018 Reviewed by: NA SUBJECT: REPORT BY: Calling for a General Municipal Election and Requesting Consolidation with the Statewide General Election Anne Hsu, City Clerk Nicole Almaguer, City Manager Craig Labadie, City Attorney SUMMARY The following report discusses the upcoming general municipal election including three ballot measures (sales tax, parcel tax, City Treasurer position) and consolidation of the election with the Statewide General Election. STAFF RECOMMENDATION That the Council: 1. Adopt Resolution No A Resolution of the Albany City Council Calling and giving Notice of a General Election to be Held November 6, 2018 and Requesting the Board of Supervisors of Alameda County to Consolidate Said Election with the Statewide General Election; Authorizing the City Clerk or Her Duly Authorized Officers to Carry Out all the Necessary Procedures for Said Election; and for Submitting to the Voters three ballot measures; and 2. Assign a Council subcommittee or subcommittees to prepare written arguments for the ballot measures as identified in Resolution No BACKGROUND Each even-numbered year, the City holds its General Municipal Election to be consolidated with the Statewide General Election that is held in November. The City is required to request the Board of Supervisors consolidate the City s regular election with the general statewide election.

2 The City has the following seats up for election: Two (2) City Council and Three (3) Board of Education. DISCUSSION At the November 2017, March 2018, May 2018, and July 2, 2018 meetings, Council reviewed the proposed ballot measures and ballot language to present to the voters on the November 8, 2018 ballot, as follows: (1) An Ordinance amending to Article 4-12 of Chapter IV to the Albany Municipal Code extending the duration of the City s existing transactions and use (sales) tax, so that it will remain in effect permanently. (2) An Ordinance enacting a Parcel tax to fund improvements and maintenance of City park and open space facilities. (3) An amendment to Section 3.01 of the Albany City Charter to transition from an elected to an appointed City Treasurer. Extension of Existing One-Half Cent Transactions and Use (Sales) Tax This is an amendment to Article 4-12, Chapter IV of the Albany Municipal code to extend an existing one-half cent sales tax (Measure F) adopted and approved by voters in 2012, expiring in April 2021, that funds continuity of existing City services and authorizes administration of the sales tax by the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. On November 6, 2017, the Council reached general consensus for a 2018 ballot measure to extend the tax. Sales Tax Extension Ballot Language To continue providing and maintaining City services and facilities, shall the City of Albany make its existing transactions and use (sales) tax permanent, providing $1.4 million annually for unrestricted general revenue purposes, without increasing the rate, with annual independent audits, and all funds spent only in Albany? Parcel Tax This is a parcel tax to replace the existing Measure R, Landscape Lighting Assessment District , which is set to expire in 2019 after the bonds purchased through this Assessment District are paid in full. The parcel tax is being proposed to fund improvements and maintenance to City park and open space facilities. 2

3 On July 2, 2018, the Council reviewed options for the parcel tax rate structure and requested a comparison to the existing LLAD 96-1 Assessment rates to confirm which of the parcel tax structures match most closely. The following details the existing LLAD 96-1 Assessment rates and the most closely matching parcel tax rate structure. All parcel tax rate options discussed to date are included as Attachment 3 to this staff report should a different rate structure be preferred by the Council. LLAD 96-1 ASSESSMENT STRUCTURE Land Use Annual Assessment SFR $69.00 Condominiums MFR 0-20 units 51.75/unit MFR > 20 units 1, /unit over 20 Commercial x ((0.25(LA/5,140)) + ((0.75(BA/1,242)) Industrial x ((0.25(LA/5,140)) + ((0.38(BA/1,242)) Industrial > 2 acres x ((0.20(LA/5,140)) + ((0.38(BA/1,242)) BA: Building Area; LA: Land Area PARCEL TAX FUNDING OPTION C Class of Improvement Number of Parcels Units/Acre Total Levy Rate SFR 3,702 3,702 $255, $69.00 per unit Condo/Townhouse 1,081 1,081 56, per unit MFR 440 1,840 95, per unit Non-Residential < 0.25 ac , per parcel Non-Residential 0.25 ac , per acre 5,504 7,017 $464, In addition, the Council asked for clarification regarding the language providing a rebate for low-income renters. The language has been updated to track the low-income renter rebate previously established for the sidewalk parcel tax enacted by the voters in 2016, with the addition of some additional findings and amendments to the proposed ordinance to clarify that the rebate serves a public purpose and is a permissible use of special tax revenues. 3

4 Parcel Tax Ballot Language To maintain park and open space facilities, with funding that cannot be taken by Sacramento, including maintaining: City parks, ballfields, play structures, picnic areas and restrooms; vegetation management to prevent wildfires; creek habitat; and Albany Hill open space; shall the City of Albany enact a measure, levying an ongoing park and open space parcel tax with a typical rate of $69 for a single family residence, providing $464,000 annually, exempting low-income residents, with annual independent audits, be adopted? Charter Amendment On May 21, 2018, the Council reviewed results of Operational and Organizational Assessment of the City s Finance Department with specific regard to structure of the City Treasurer. As detailed in the report, it is recommended that the City seek a transition from an elected to an appointed City Treasurer, and to also work towards establishing a financial oversight committee for the City. Council directed staff and the Charter Review Committee to draft ballot language for a transition from an elected to an appointed City Treasurer, resulting in the following proposed ballot language. Charter Amendment Ballot Language Shall the Albany City Charter Section 3.01 be amended, as set forth in the voter pamphlet, to provide that the City Treasurer be appointed by the City Council effective December 1, 2020, or sooner if there is a vacancy in the office? As identified in proposed Resolution , Establishing Rules for the Conduct of the November 6, 2018 Election, an impartial analysis of each ballot measure will be prepared by the City Attorney for inclusion in the voter s pamphlet. The analyses are to be filed by the City Clerk with the Registrar of Voters Office by August 10, In addition, arguments pro and con regarding the ballot measures will be included in the voter s pamphlet. Arguments are limited to 300 words in length, and must be filed by 12:00 p.m., August 17, 2018 in the City Clerk s Office. In the event that opposing ballot arguments are presented, rebuttal arguments will be allowed. These rebuttal arguments are limited to 250 words. Arguments submitted in rebuttal of an opposing ballot argument shall be filed by 12:00 p.m., August 24, 2018 in the City Clerk s Office. Per the Elections Code, only one argument for and one argument against a ballot measure (and one rebuttal argument for and against if any) will be selected. It is recommended that the Council assign a subcommittee to prepare a written argument for each of the proposed ballot measures (Elections Code Sections ). The 4

5 Council has the option of assigning one subcommittee of the Council to author all arguments, or, may wish to assign a variety of different subcommittees of the Council to author arguments. For example, given that there are three measures intended for the November 6, 2018 ballot, the Council could have up to three different subcommittees, each authoring an argument for a ballot measure. Additionally, should a Council Member or subcommittee of the Council wish to author an argument against a ballot measure, it is recommended that the Council formally authorize this in order to ensure the argument holds priority over any other arguments received. Ballot measure arguments may have up to five signatures should the Council Member/subcommittee authoring the argument wish to obtain additional signatories for an argument. SUSTAINABILITY IMPACT N/A FINANCIAL IMPACT The cost of the election has ranged from $15,000-30,000 over the course of the last several elections. It is anticipated that the total cost may increase for the November 6, 2018 election due to the increasing number of registered voters since the launch of the new California Motor Voter Program as defined by AB 1461 which automatically register qualified applicants to vote unless that person opts out of registration during Department of Motor Vehicle (DMV) transactions. Attachments: 1. Resolution No , including all ballot measures and associated ordinances for submittal to the voters 2. Forms and Instructions for Ballot Measure Arguments 3. Parcel Tax - Tax Rate Options