Arcata, California, Utility Users Tax, Measure F (November 2016)
| Measure F: Arcata Utility Users Tax |
|---|
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| The basics |
| Election date: |
| November 8, 2016 |
| Status: |
 Approved
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| Topic: |
| Local utility tax and fees Expires in: 8 years |
| Related articles |
| Local utility tax and fees on the ballot November 8, 2016 ballot measures in California Humboldt County, California ballot measures City tax on the ballot |
| See also |
| Arcata, California |
A utility tax measure was on the ballot for Arcata voters in Humboldt County, California, on November 8, 2016. It was approved.
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of continuing a 3 percent tax on city utility services for the next eight years. |
| A no vote was a vote against continuing a 3 percent tax on city utility services for the next eight years. |
Election results
| Measure F | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
| Yes | 3,953 | 51.73% | ||
| No | 3,688 | 48.27% | ||
- Election results from Humbolt County Elections Office
Text of measure
Ballot question
The following question appeared on the ballot:[1]
| “ |
Shall the City of Arcata continue to impose a three percent (3%) utility users tax (Resolution No. 156-63) on the ordinary use of utility services in the City, including gas, electric, water, wastewater, and communications services, and automatically terminating in eight years, separate from and without impacting the City's excessive electricity users tax?[2] |
” |
Impartial analysis
The following impartial analysis of the measure was prepared by the office of the Arcata City Attorney:
| “ |
Measure F was placed on the ballot by the Arcata City Council to ask whether the City of Arcata should continue its utility users tax (UUT) without change for eight years. All revenue generated by the UUT goes into the City’s general fund and pays for essential governmental services including, but not limited to, police, public works, parks, recreation and other City services. The tax generated approximately $900,000 during fiscal year 2015-2016, which was approximately 7.2 % of the City’s net general fund revenue. The UUT imposes a tax at the rate of three percent (3%) of the usage of the following utility services used within the City’s boundaries: (1) communication services, including telephone and video programming services regardless of the method by which they are provided; (2) electrical energy services; (3) gas services; (4) water services; and (5) wastewater collection services. Communication services billed to an address located in Arcata are presumed to have been used in Arcata and subject to the tax. The tax is computed on the basis of monthly usage and service charges, and is collected by the service provider. For each service user, the combined total tax would continue to be capped at $1500 per fiscal year, subject to annual adjustment in accordance with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) beginning July 1, 2010. The adjusted cap for fiscal year 2016-2017 is equal to $1,657.20. Existing tax exemptions would remain in place. These exemptions include gas and electric usage by persons who receive Low Income Rate Assistance (“LIRA”); basic telephone service usage by persons who receive “universal lifeline service;” and any additional exemptions for specific classes of persons or utilities adopted by the Arcata City Council by ordinance or resolution. The City first adopted the UUT in 1993, and voters renewed it in 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2008. In 2012, voters approved the addition of a high electricity usage utility users tax in the amount of 45% taxed on residential electric customers whose electricity usage exceeds 600% over the baseline allowance. The high electric use tax approved in 2012 expires in 2024 and is not affected by Measure F. The current UUT, exclusive of the high electricity use tax, will expire automatically on December 1, 2016. Voter approval of this Measure would continue the UUT without change for eight years, terminating automatically on November 30, 2024. This Measure must be approved by a majority of the voters.
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” |
| —Arcata City Attorney[1] | ||
Full text
The full text of the measure is available here.
Path to the ballot
This measure was put on the ballot through a vote of the governing officials of Arcata, California.
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Arcata Local utility tax and fees. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Humboldt County Elections Office, "Sample Ballot and Voter Information Pamphlet," accessed October 25, 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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