CC Minutes - 12/09/02 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Pap6, moved that the City Council adopt Council Bill 4811, an ordinance repealing a Measure 7 implementation ordinance. Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously, 8:0. VII. ACTION: An Ordinance Concerning Transportation System Maintenance Fees and Adding Sections 7.750 through 7.795 to the Eugene Code, 1971 Mayor Torrey said the proposed ordinance was back before the council after an earlier motion to reconsider. The motion before the council was to adopt the ordinance. He said now was the time to debate the proposed ordinance, consider any amendments to it, and then take a final vote. He noted that the motion was already on the table. In response to a question from Councilor Rayor regarding the definition of"fee" and "tax" and the legal objection to the proposed fee, City Attorney Glenn Klein said he had sent an e-mail to the council saying that he disagreed with the legal objections to the fee. In response to a question from Councilor Pap6 regarding the possibility of the council's decision being overturned in the State Legislature, Mr. Klein said that the legislature could overturn the council decision. He cited the overturning of the video poker ordinance as a precedent. He said the reason to try to enact the ordinance at the current time was because according to League of Oregon Cities staff, preemptions usually were back dated to the beginning of the legislative session. He said if the ordinance were enacted prior to the legislative session, then it would be less likely to be preempted. In response to a question from Councilor Pap~ regarding the possibility of Eugene's fee being more than what the City of Springfield had proposed, City Manager Carlson said the general concept of the two fees were in aligmnent. He said Eugene would propose an identical gas tax to the Springfield gas tax. In response to a question from Councilor Taylor regarding what would happen if someone refused to pay the fee, City Manager Carlson said he did not know which bill agent would be used. Mr. Klein added that there was nothing in the ordinance to allow the City to shut off a residence's water if the fee were not paid. In response to a question from Councilor Taylor regarding whether there was consideration of a vehicle registration tax by Lane County, City Manager Carlson said the commissioners had discussed the matter and declined to move ahead with countywide solutions. Councilor Nathanson raised concern that the City of Eugene was receiving less than half of what it had received from the County five years ago in Road Fund moneys. She stressed the importance of fixing the City's road problems before they increased. In response to a question from Councilor Nathanson regarding a cap on funding, City Manager Carlson said the matter would be settled during the budget process. Councilor Fart distributed a survey showing that the economy was the top concern of Oregonians. He raised concern that too many fees and taxes would keep businesses out of the City of Eugene. He stressed that the City was losing businesses. He said the funding mechanism of a transportation maintenance fee was not appropriate for the City at the current time. MINUTES--Eugene City Council December 9, 2002 Page 9 Regular Meeting