Item 2D - 2005 Leg.Policies Doc - Laserfiche WebLink

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share in the cost of property tax administration. In addition, appeals of assessed property value may result in loss of taxable value within the city and subsequent loss of tax revenue. This is of particular concern for the City of Eugene and other cities which have a substantial portion of their taxable valuation provided by high-technology facilities which may be subject to extreme swings in assessed value. Unexpected reductions of assessed values in such cases can have damaging effect on local services. In order to anticipate changes in taxable valuation, cities should be notified of appeals of assessed value for non-residential property. Recommendations: 1. Support statewide standards for assessment and taxation services to ensure that assessment records are correct and up-to-date, and thus can be used to provide accurate calculations of property tax revenue. 2. Support stable and dedicated sources of statewide funding for assessment and taxation activities. 3. Oppose any shift to cities for funding of county assessment and taxation activities unless an additional source of revenue is identified. 4. Support a requirement that cities be notified of appeals of assessed value for non- residential property. Cities should be given a formal opportunity to comment on the record. C. OTHERLOCALBUDGETCONCERNS 1. STATE-SHARED REVENUE The provision of police, fire, planning, zoning and other services make the City eligible to receive these funds from the State. The City receives approximately $2.5 million each fiscal year in state shared revenue. This money is placed in the City's General Fund and is used to provide essential services, such as police and fire. Recommendation: 1. Support any effort to increase the amount of state shared revenues sent to local governments and oppose any action that would reduce current funding levels. 2. ABILITY TO CHARGE FOR STATE-MANDATED SERVICES Cities should be allowed to recover the full cost of providing a service when performing mandated activities on behalf of the State. The State may have an interest in setting guidelines for the fees charged by local government, but cities should be able to request fee increases when their documented costs exceed State recommendations. City of Eugene Legislative Policies, 2005 Session 13