Item 2A - Minutes Approval - Laserfiche WebLink

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amendment to subsection (b) of Section 3.467 shall sunset on February 25, 2008, and the tax will revert to its current $.03 per gallon.' Speaking to the motion to amend, Councilor Ortiz acknowledged that some had referred to the ordinance as a "band-aid" but averred that she was willing to help with the "band-aid" for the community. She commented that the City needed to pay for its streets, even if gasoline became very expensive as a result. She supported taking a comprehensive look, as the Mayor had recommended, at all of the funding pieces including Lane County, ODOT, and others. She felt that placing a sunset on the gas tax would give an ending date for that to happen by. Councilor Pap6 did not think Eugene should "out-step" its neighbor, Springfield. However, he felt having a sunset on the tax would help him to support its enactment. He agreed that more funding for roads was needed. Councilor Bettman voiced her opposition to the main motion. She reiterated her concern that road funding was not being prioritized appropriately, citing as an example of her concern what she considered a costly project that Lane County had undertaken to replace the one-lane bridge to Mount Pisgah Arboretum. She was unwilling to ask voters for more money until the elected officials exercised some discipline with the money they had. Councilor Taylor said she would vote against the tax but for the amendment in case the gas tax passed. Councilor Kelly thanked Councilor Ortiz for offering the amendment and indicated his support. City Attorney Glenn Klein suggested a change in the sunset date to February 29, 2008. Councilor Ortiz incorporated that as an amendment to the motion. Councilor Pap6, second to the motion, voiced no objection. Roll call vote; the amendment passed, 7:1; Councilor Bettman voting in opposition. Speaking to the main motion, Councilor Kelly said he had worked on the transportation maintenance funding issue for most of his tenure on the council. He agreed with Mayor Piercy that the elected officials needed to take a step back and take a broader look and see where some consensus could be found. He reiterated his support for a transportation system maintenance fee (TSMF). However, he would oppose the motion because he felt the diesel exemption created an inequity. Councilor Taylor indicated her opposition to the motion. Councilor Solomon, responding to comments about a lack Of discipline on the part of elected officials, stated that there had not been an increase in the State gasoline tax for more than a decade and during this period wherein revenues had remained the same, fuel efficiency and the cost of construction had increased. She underscored that there had been a "myriad" of reasons that brought the City to its current crisis. She called it unfair to place blame entirely on staff and the elected officials. Councilor Ortiz felt compelled to support the tax. She acknowledged that it would not fix the problem for good, but emphasized that the roads needed fixing, nonetheless. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 24, 2005 Page 15 Regular Session