RES 00071A - Laserfiche WebLink

Pleasanton's retail sales tax revenues, which comprise our second largest source of funding for general city services such as public safety, public works, parks and community services. Hotel/Motel Taxes The City assesses a transient occupancy tax of 8% on all dwellings occupied less than 30 days. There are 1,792 hotel/motel rooms in the City, with approximately 171 more expected to be added in 2001. With the booming economy, hotel tax revenues are increasing slightly more than staff projected. For Midyear 1999 -00, staff increased the projection by $60,000. Similarly, for 2000 -01, staff is increasing the projection by $44,000 (1.2 to $3.7 million. Business J.icense Taxes During the Midyear review of 1999 -00, Business License Tax revenue projections were increased by $152,000 to $2.2 million based on collections to date. Similarly, another $291,000 is being added to the original 2000 -01 projection, bringing its total to $2.4 million. The 2000 -01 projection represents an expected increase of 9% over the current year (1999- 00), and a 15.5% increase over 1998 -99. Documentary Transfer Taxes While the market value of resale homes has been on a steady rise this last year, fewer homes are on the market and being resold than in many previous years. Therefore, the transfer tax assessed when a property changes hands is not growing like property taxes are. In fact, staff projects these taxes will be slightly less next fiscal year (2000 -01) than they were a year ago (1998 -99). However, when the budget was adopted last spring, staff estimated that the revenue would continue to grow. Therefore, the projection is now being reduced by $123,000, to $600,000. State Vehicle License Fees (VLF) Vehicle license fees are a subvention received from the State in lieu of property taxes on motor vehicles. The subvention allocation is determined by population. With the current good economy, the City has seen a growth in these revenues. While the State has been holding to their promise of reducing this tax over time to the public, they have to date, backfilled the revenue to cities, so that the State, not the cities, is impacted by the reduction. However, this backfill is not constitutionally protected, and thus is not guaranteed in the future, especially if the State economy falters. The City is currently losing over $4 million per year due to the "ERAF" shifts of property tax revenues that the State implemented during the recession of the early and mid 1990s. Over the last ten years, staff estimates that the City has lost about $26 million to State funding shifts. This loss was only partially "backfilled" with Proposition 172 Public Safety Sales Tax MEI 6