A committee has been formed to support the renewal of San Marino’s public safety and utility tax measures on the Nov. 3, 2015 ballot. The measures have been in place since 1980 and 1992 respectively, and provide an important part of the city’s budget for police, fire, paramedics and capital improvement projects. The committee is co-chaired by Jerry Hawk, Mort Mortimer, Tom Santley and Linda Sun.
“San Marino is a very special community,” said Hawk, “and our public safety and schools are at the core of it. We need to protect this by passing both measures ‘U’ and ‘SA.’ We picked the designations ‘USA’ because San Marino reflects what’s great about our country, our safety and a real community feeling.”
“Measure ‘U’ is a Utility User Tax with a maximum rate of 5 percent. It generates approximately $1.7 million per year or 6.7 percent of the city’s unrestricted funds budget for 2015-16, and is used to support operating and capital projects including sewer and storm drain repair and replacement, road repair, Lacy Park, street lighting, and sidewalk repairs to mention a few,” added Hawk.
Measure ‘SA’ is a public safety tax and is used exclusively to support the police, fire and paramedics, representing approximately $2.9 million or 11.3 percent of the city’s unrestricted funds budget in 2015-16. San Marino’s police and fire departments have superior response rates in the San Gabriel Valley. The effective tax in 2016-17, if passed, will be approximately $457-$2,611 in residential and commercial zones.
According to co-chair Linda Sun, “Every dollar stays in San Marino. It is vital that San Marino continues to receive sufficient funding to maintain existing public safety and emergency response programs, and the high quality services that make this community so special.”
“Both Measures ‘U’ and ‘SA’ are a renewal of what the community has supported for over 35 years, they are not new taxes,” said Santley. “In fact, Measure ‘U’ is a reduction, by reducing the cap from 6 percent to 5 percent.”
Other members of the Committee include: Lee Baca, Kathryn Barger-Leibrich, Dan Biles, Wayne Carter, Brent Chang, Jennifer Chen, Doris Christensen, Louise Cook, Hilary Dorsey, Sally Fadley, Corinne Hawk, Calvin Lo, Pete Loeffler, Dick Pearson, David Stuteville, Ken Ude and David Wang.
Committee In Opposition of Measures ‘U,’ ‘SA’ May Form
There is a concerned group of citizens who believe the city’s operating costs are among the highest in the state and the excess spending is putting the city in financial jeopardy. This group is advocating a detailed review of the city’s operations by a “Blue Ribbon” committee of qualified citizens. Should this not occur, the group will mount an effort to defeat the measure in order to cut off a source of funding and force needed reforms.
