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voters with one measure at a time. Ms. Taylor was very interested in a property tax exemption or <br />cap for owner-occupied property, and suggested that be placed on the City's legislative agenda. <br /> <br />Ms. Taylor asked what happened to the concept of a real estate transfer tax. Mr. Johnson believed <br />the State legislature precluded the City from enacting such a tax for many years to come. <br /> <br />Mr. Kelly noted his concurrence with Ms. Bettman's remarks regarding the shift in the balance of <br />taxes between residential and nonresidential properties, and cited some figures from a 1999 article <br />in the Oregon Business magazine in support of that perception. He agreed with Mr. Farr that a <br />regional focus would be best, and encouraged staff to involve Springfield in the discussions to the <br />degree possible. He thought it was becoming evident to the Springfield city councilors that they <br />shared the same issues as Eugene. <br /> <br />Mr. Kelly wanted more work done on the City Club's taxing recommendations as well as on a <br />business or corporate income tax. Regarding the information provided on a corporate income tax, <br />he suggested that staff research the impact of including partnerships in such a tax. Regarding the <br />information provided on a gross receipts tax, Mr. Kelly noted a small marginal rate produced <br />considerable funding. He suggested a small rate would be more acceptable to the public. <br /> <br />Mr. Kelly indicated interest in more information regarding how a personal income tax could be <br />applied to nonresidents. <br /> <br />Mr. Meisner wanted to ensure that funding was sufficient to meet the City's forecast of future <br />needs, such as community policing. He had mixed feelings about dedicating funds to certain uses. <br />If the sum involved was small and the nexus reasonable, that was one thing; if the council was <br />discussing replacing property taxes, he wanted to dedicate funds to public services, but did not <br />require that dedication to be programmatic. <br /> <br />Mr. Meisner also agreed with the City Club recommendations. He was not interested in a payroll <br />tax. He had some interest in a general sales tax because it would capture revenues from those <br />traveling through town and using City services. He thought the issue of regressivity could be <br />addressed by proper exemptions. <br /> <br />Referring to the agenda item summary, Mr. Meisner questioned the use of the word "equitable" on <br />page 6. He said that "equitably" was a judgment of fairness. <br /> <br />Regarding the potential of dedicated revenues, Ms. Taylor said she was generally opposed to <br />dedicating revenues. She said there was many times when there was a need to be met, but the <br />funds available were dedicated to other uses. <br /> <br /> Mr. Kelly, seconded by Mr. Pap~, moved that, in preparation for the <br /> December 10 discussion, the council direct the City Manager to develop <br /> additional background materials and proposed implementation plans for the <br /> <br /> MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 8, 2001 Page 6 <br /> Work Session <br /> <br /> <br />