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HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution No. 4932 --::~=- COUNCIL RESOLUTION NO. 4932 A RESOLUTION CALLING A CITY ELECTION ON MAY 20, 2008, FOR THE PURPOSE OF REFERRING TO THE LEGAL ELECTORS OF THE CITY OF EUGENE, IF THE REQUISITE SIGNATURES WERE OBTAINED ON THE REFERENDUM PETITION, ORDINANCE NO. 20401 AMENDING SECTION 3 OF ORDINANCE NO. 20337, TO EXTEND THE SUNSET OF $0.02 PER GALLON OF THE MOTOR VEHICLE FUEL DEALER'S BUSINESS LICENSE TAX UNTIL FEBRUARY 28, 2011. PASSED: 8:0 REJECTED: OPPOSED: ABSENT: RECUSED: CONSIDERED: March 10, 2008 RESOLUTION NO. 4932 A RESOLUTION CALLING A CITY ELECTION ON MAY 20, 2008, FOR THE PURPOSE OF REFERRING TO THE LEGAL ELECTORS OF THE CITY OF EUGENE, IF THE REQUISITE SIGNATURES WERE OBTAINED ON THE REFERENDUM PETITION, ORDINANCE NO. 20401 AMENDING SECTION 3 OF ORDINANCE NO. 20337, TO EXTEND THE SUNSET OF $0.02 PER GALLON OF THE MOTOR VEHICLE FUEL DEALER'S BUSINESS LICENSE TAX UNTIL FEBRUARY 28, 2011. The City Council of the City of Eugene finds as follows: A. Based on a recommendation from the Citizens' Subcommittee on Transportation System Funding, the City enacted its first motor vehicle fuel tax at three cents per gallon in January 2003 and began collecting the tax in August 2003, which has generated approximately $2 million per year from that original three-cent tax. The Committee recommended a combination of the motor vehicle fuel tax and a transportation system maintenance fee in order to generate approximately $9 million annually to address the City's critical transportation system funding needs. Although the transportation system maintenance fee, designed to generate $6.5 to $7 million annually, was adopted, it was repealed before it could be fully implemented. B. In January 2005, the City Council enacted Ordinance No. 20337 approving a two- cent increase to the motor vehicle fuel tax from three to five cents per gallon. Section 3 of Ordinance No. 20337 contained a sunset provision with respect to the two-cent increase which would cause the tax to revert to three cents per gallon on February 29,2008. C. In adopting the sunset provision, the City Council anticipated that three years would allow sufficient time to complete a comprehensive review of available funding options and to develop a stable funding strategy to meet the City's transportation system needs D. Although nearly $14 million of street preservation work has been completed utilizing the revenue generated by the motor vehicle fuel tax, the backlog of needed repair work continues to grow. By early 2007 the estimated cost of that backlog of repairs had grown to nearly $170 million, and without new funding, was projected to grow to more than $280 million within the next 10 years. E. In early 2007 a Council subcommittee studied the City's transportation funding needs and options and submitted a report in May 2007 with recommendations to increase the local motor vehicle fuel tax by three cents per gallon (generating an additional $2 million annually) to eights cents per gallon and to repeal the sunset provision. This increase in the fuel tax rate, together with the other revenue options in the funding package recommended by the subcommittee, was projected to generate nearly $16 million per year to address the projected Resolution - Page 1 of 3 operating deficits in the Road Fund operations and maintenance activities and to provide funding for the $170 million backlog of unfunded street repair projects. F. On May 29, 2007, the City Council approved Ordinance No. 20384, which increased the motor vehicle fuel dealer's license tax by three cents per gallon and repealed the sunset provision contained in Section 3 of Ordinance No. 20337. This ordinance was subject to a referendum petition, and the Council subsequently repealed Ordinance No. 20384. In lieu of that ordinance, the Council submitted to the electors of the City a measure to increase the motor vehicle fuel dealer's business license tax by three cents per gallon. G. At the election held on November 6, 2007, the electors of the City rejected the measure to increase the motor vehicle fuel dealer's business license tax by three cents per gallon. H. On January 28, 2008, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 20401, which extends by three years the sunset provision in Section 3 of Ordinance No. 20337, so that the motor vehicle fuel dealer's business license tax as set forth in Section 3.467(b) of the Eugene Code, 1971 would remain at five cents per gallon until February 28,2011. I. On February 27, 2008, referendum petitioners submitted over 11,000 signatures to the City Recorder. The City Recorder has forwarded the signatures to Lane County Elections to determine whether the requisite number of valid signatures was submitted in order to refer Ordinance No. 20401 to the electors. J. If Lane County certifies that the requIsIte number of valid signatures was submitted, then an election on Ordinance No. 20401 would be held at the September 2008 election unless the City Council refers the Ordinance to an earlier election. The City Council finds it would be in the public interest to have the vote occur in May 2008, rather than September, 2008. NOW, THEREFORE, based upon the above findings, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF EUGENE, a Municipal Corporation of the State of Oregon, as follows: Section 1. If the requisite number of valid signatures referenced in the above findings were submitted, then a city election is called for the purpose of referring to the legal electors of the City of Eugene Ordinance No. 20401 amending section 3 of Ordinance No. 20337, to read as follows: "Section 3 of Ordinance No. 20337 (the sunset provision) adopted by the City Council on January 24, 2005, is hereby amended to read: "Unless otherwise extended by the City Council, the amendment to Subsection (b) of Section 3.467 shall sunset on February 28, 2011, and the tax will revert to three cents per gallon." "A copy of this Ordinance shall be appended to Ordinance No. 20337." Resolution - Page 2 of 3 Section 2. The City Council orders the city election referred to in section 1 to be held in the City of Eugene, Oregon, concurrently with the statewide election on May 20, 2008, in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 254 of the Oregon Revised Statutes, and the ballots shall be counted and tabulated and the results certified as provided by law. Section 3. The City Recorder is directed to give not less than ten days' notice of any such city election by publication of one notice in the Register Guard, a newspaper published in the City and of general circulation within the City. Section 4. This Resolution shall become effective immediately upon its adoption. The foregoing Resolution adopted the 10th day of March, 2008. JiJ;tet ~eJ-- ity corder Resolution - Page 3 of 3