City Parcel Tax Renewal and Rate  –

The Piedmont Budget Advisory & Financial Planning Committee will meet in the Emergency Operations Center, Police Department, 403 Highland Avenue at 6 pm on Thursday, August 8.

The meeting is open to the public. The meeting will not be broadcast. 

One of the Committee’s charges is to:

“Periodically examine the need for the Municipal Services Special Tax (Parcel Tax) and recommend whether this tax should be continued, and if so, at what rate. This charge shall be accomplished not later than eighteen (18) months prior to the expiration of the tax as set forth in Chapter 20B of the City Code.”

Committee minutes are not publicly available or placed on committee agendas for committee approval and public review.  Audio recordings are made of the Budget Advisory and Financial Planning Committee meetings and are available from the City Clerk’s office at (510) 420-3040.

Agenda:

Public Forum: This is an opportunity for members of the audience to speak on an item not on the agenda. The 10 minute period will be divided evenly between those wishing to address the Committee.

Regular Agenda

1. Update on the Committee’s Review of the Parcel Tax Pursuant to Resolution 120–14. 

2. Consideration of Scheduling Future Meetings

___________

The Budget Advisory and Financial Planning Committee was formed by the City Council to review and provide comment on five year projections contained in the City’s annual budget proposal, the proposed funding and expenditures from several long term funds, and the proposed mid-year budget adjustments. It also provides a financial review of new programs in excess of $250,000 per year. The Committee also periodically reviews and comments on the long term sufficiency of several city funds as well as making a recommendation on whether the Municipal Services Special tax should be continued at and what rate. Click to read the committee’s complete > charge.

The Piedmont Budget Advisory & Financial Planning Committee will meet in the Emergency Operations Center, Police Department, 403 Highland Avenue at 6 pm on Tuesday, July 23.

The meeting is open to the public. The meeting will not be broadcast or recorded.  Minutes of the Committee meetings are not kept. 

Agenda:

Public Forum : This is an opportunity for members of the audience to speak on an item not on the agenda. The 10 minute period will be divided evenly between those wishing to address the Committee.

Regular Agenda

2. Update on the Committee’s Review of the Parcel Tax Pursuant to Resolution 120-14 (No staff report was released for this item.)
3. Consideration of Scheduling Future Meetings

Contact numbers:

12 Remaining Beneficiaries –

The Piedmont Police & Fire Pension Board will meet Wednesday, July 24 at 4:00 PM in the City Council Chambers, 120 Vista Avenue. The meeting will not be broadcast, however it is open to the public. Minutes are kept of the meetings. 

This board will continue as long as there are retirees or dependents who are covered by the old plan established prior to Piedmont entering CalPERS. 

 Board membership of five individuals includes representatives from both the Police and Fire Departments and one appointed position, typically Piedmont’s mayor.  The Board meets quarterly and will continue as long as there are retirees or dependents who are covered by the discontinued plan.

For the last quarter, there were only 12 remaining beneficiaries of the Piedmont Police and Fire Pension fund.  See Finance Director’s Memo 719.

“The representatives of Osterweis Capital Management reported April 24, 2019 on the Police Trust Fund Report and Fire Pension Fund which was valued at $12,773,842, which is up 9.65% for the quarter. They reported that the Other Post Employment Benefits Trust was valued at $8,576,719, which is up 10.32% for the quarter.”

Agenda:

1. Approval of minutes for 4/24/2019  Pension Board minutes 2019-04-24 DRAFT 719

2. Acceptance of Participant Report, summarizing benefits paid in the 4th Quarter of FY 18/19 and current number of beneficiaries Finance Director’s Memo 719

3. Acceptance of the 2nd Quarter 2019 Report of Pension Fund Investments by Osterweis Capital Management

4. Acceptance of the 2nd Quarter 2019 Report of Other Post Employment Benefits Investments by Osterweis Capital Management

For further information, contact:

Measure A = $2,763 Uniform per year tax for all parcels

Measure B = Adds an additional tax based on building Square Footage for up to $3,192 more per year. 

To view the actual proposed tax on your home or property go to the staff report and read the chart seen below.

The Piedmont School Board will act on June 26, 2019 to place on the November Ballot two new school parcel taxes. Measure A will be a uniform parcel cost of $2,763 per parcel.  Measure B is based on square footage of building space.  If both measures pass, the smallest square foot building homeowner would pay $2,763 per year, and the largest square foot of building would pay $6,675 per year.

The staff recommendation is for 2 Measures on the November 2019 Ballot.  Given the recent poll results and Piedmont’s current educational needs, District staff recommends that the Board of Education consider asking voters to support the renewal of its existing parcel tax to maintain current programs at the $2,763 flat rate (“Measure A”) and in a separate measure (“Measure B”) asking voters for an additional amount ($0.25 per building square foot) to ensure that Piedmont schools will be better able to attract and retain highly qualified teachers and educational support staff.

Renewing the existing parcel tax (“Measure A”) would secure $10.8 million in revenues. Measure A is a continuation, no tax increase measure. We [District Staff] would also recommend an 8-year “duration” of the tax to provide a stable ongoing source of revenue to the District and fulfill the description as a pure continuation of what is in place today.

To view what you would pay if Measure A and/or B pass, see below:

# of parcels	Square Feet of improved property	% of parcels	Measure A $2,763	Measure B @ 0.25 per sq/ft	A+B (total tax)
104	0/vacant	2.6%	$2,763	$0	$2,763
25	557-1,000	0.6%	$2,763	$139 – $250	$2,902 – $3,013
1098	1,001-2,000	27.9%	$2,763	$250 – $500	$3,013 – $3,263
1528	2,001-3,000	38.8%	$2,763	$500 – $750	$3,263 – $3,874
707	3,001-4,000	17.9%	$2,763	$750 – $1,000	$3,874 – $3,763
267	4,001-5,000	6.7%	$2,763	$1,000 – $1,250	$3,763 – $4,013
99	5,001-6,000	2.5%	$2,763	$1,250 – $1,500	$4,013 – $4,263
38	6,001-7,000	1.0%	$2,763	$1,500 – $1,750	$4,263 – $4,513
19	7,001-8,000	0.5%	$2,763	$1,750 – $2,000	$4,513 – $4,763
19	8,001-9,000	0.5%	$2,763	$2,000 – $2,250	$4,763 – $5,013
8	9,001-10,000	0.2%	$2,763	$2,250 – $2,500	$5,013 – $5,263
21	10,001-15,650	0.3%	$2,763	$2,500 – $3,912	$5,263 – $6,675
1	25,635 (apartment)	<0.1%	$2,763	$6,409	$9,172

VI_F_UpdatedBackgroundSchoolSupportTax_0 with chart

Additionally, we [District Staff] recommend that a second measure (“Measure B”) be placed on the ballot. [See above chart.] This second measure would be set at $0.25 per building square foot and would also have an 8-year duration. Passage of Measure B would result in an additional $2.6 million to the Piedmont schools. Importantly, the entire community would share the burden of an increased tax (although larger properties would pay more and smaller properties less – $139 per year for the smallest residential parcel). An added benefit is that if this tax were challenged from a legal standpoint, only the supplemental tax would be at legal risk.

If both measures pass, the smallest square foot homeowner would pay $2,763 per year, and the largest square foot building owner would pay $9,172 per year.

Together [Measure A and B], both measures would raise $13.4 million.

II. RECOMMENDATION: REVIEW AND ACTION After convening the second of two (2) public hearings—June 12, 2019 and June 26, 2019, District staff recommends that the Board adopt the two subsequent Board Resolutions (Measure A & B) that authorize both the renewal of a qualified special tax and a second qualified special tax for voter approval on November 5, 2019.

VI.F. Approve Resolution 19-2018-19 “Proposing a Qualified Special Tax and Establishing Specification of the Election Order Measure A”

At 8:40 p.m. the Board is requested to approve the attached Resolution 19-2018-19 “Proposing a Qualified Special Tax and Establishing Specifications of the Election Order Measure A”.

The Resolution calls for an election on November 5, 2019 to extend the authorization of the Board to levy the current School Support Tax as permitted in Measure A for eight years starting on July 1, 2020.  The new Measure “A” is a renewal of the current School Support Tax—a uniform flat tax on all parcels.  The new Measure “A” will continue to provide an exemption for churches, public utilities, and those eligible for Social Security Supplemental Income.  The new Measure “A” also continues to permit an inflation growth rate of up to two (2) percent per year.

Attachments:

VI_F_UpdatedBackgroundSchoolSupportTax_0

VI_F_UpdatedResolution19201819MeasureA_0

 At 9:00 p.m. ~

VI.G. Approve Resolution 20-2018-19 “Proposing a Qualified Special Tax and Establishing Specification of the Election Order Measure B” 

The Board is requested to approve the attached Resolution 20-2018-19 “Proposing a Qualified Special Tax and Establishing Specifications of the Election Order Measure B”.

The Resolution calls for an election on November 5, 2019 to authorize the Board to levy a new School Support Tax as permitted in Measure “B”  for eight years starting on July 1, 2020.  The new Measure “B” is a uniform tax applied at $0.25 per square foot of building improvements.  The new Measure “B” will continue to provide an exemption for churches, public utilities, and those eligible for Social Security Supplemental Income.  The new Measure “B” does not include an inflation growth rate.

VI_G_Resolution20201819MeasureBParcelTax_0

READ the above linked reports for further details.

The meeting will be held in Piedmont City Hall, broadcast on Cable Channel 27 and the Piedmont website under School Board. 

 

Los Angeles voters soundly defeated a proposal to support LA schools based on a per square footage of interior space of buildings.  The owner of a 2,000 square-foot-house would have paid $320 a year to support the schools.

Measure EE would have raised an estimated $500 million annually for 12 years by charging property owners 16 cents per square foot of indoor space, excluding parking areas. … Los Angeles Times

To read the article below, click the headline:

Los Angeles voters decisively reject parcel tax that would have raised $500 million annually for schools

Piedmont School Board
c/o Randy Booker, Superintendent

re: June 12, 2019 Agenda item: School Taxes

Dear President Smith and Board,

I.      I take exception to Mr. Booker’s comments May 22 at 3:48 that a single square foot building tax would not allow the District to have a separate flat tax on unimproved parcels.  I again cite two sources:
– SB2954 (2018) Legislation allows a separate unimproved parcel rate.
– Alameda School District’s 2011 Measure A square foot of building tax with a separate flat rate for unimproved parcels and the identical 2016 Measure B1 tax; both these taxes withstood legal challenges.  Significantly, Judge Petrou in his 2018 stipulated judgement required a flat rate tax on unimproved parcels to bring Measure B1 in alignment with Measure A (source: Sean McPhetridge, AUSD Superintendent,  4/4/2018 Press Release).

II.     While identifying all parcels by their Assessor’s Parcel Number (APN) is welcome, having multi-parcel owners combine parcels to a single APN to avoid paying multiple taxes is a problematic solution. Combining parcels at the County level eliminates some buildable lots. Should the owners wish to recapture these parcels, the process is not simple and is done at the City level.  Applications, surveys and new legal descriptions on new recorded documents would be required. This does not respect Piedmont taxpayers who have been so generous in their School support. Finally, eliminating buildable size parcels works against Piedmont’s requirement of meeting State mandates of providing more housing.
A multi-parcel exemption handled by the District is the proper and simple solution.

III.    I again propose a single $1.15 per square foot building tax which gives the District a 15% increase in tax revenue.  This acknowledges that Piedmonters have been very generous in their District support and a 25% in total increase is excessive.

Respectfully,
Rick Schiller, Piedmont Resident

Editors Note: Opinions expressed are those of the author.

A Search for Students to Fill Piedmont Schools

A reduction in school populations, the potential loss of State per student revenue, and State Open Enrollment laws have induced the Piedmont School District to widen student acceptance to Piedmont schools on a priority basis.  The children of Piedmont City employees and Piedmont School District employees have previously been admitted to Piedmont schools. Newly added for priority acceptance are the non-resident grandchildren of Piedmont residents along with children residing in certain neighboring Piedmont properties.

The matter will be undertaken at 7:25 p.m.,  Wednesday, June 12, 2019, School Board Meeting, City Hall, 120 Vista Avenue.  

Specific qualifications and applications are required for each potential interdistrict transfer student into the Piedmont schools.  Once a student is accepted into the Piedmont School District, they are allowed to remain during their school years.  See the proposed requirements linked below.

VI.B. Review and Approve Changes to Board Policy and Administrative Regulation 5117 – Interdistrict Attendance – 2nd Reading

VI_B_BackgroundBPAR5117InterdistrictTransferPolicies_0 (1)

VI_B_DraftBPAR5117InterdistrictTransfers_0 (1)

VI_B_DraftIDTAnnouncementLetter_0 (1)

7:15 PM Piedmont School Board Meeting June 12, 2019, Piedmont City Hall, 120 Vista Avenue.

The public is invited to attend or watch the live broadcast on Cable Channel 27 and from the City website under videos/School Board meeting.

 VI.A. Conduct Public Hearing on the Proposed Levy of Current School Support Tax, Measure A, to be Levied in 2019-20

VI_A_MeasureATaxLevyReport_0

One tax measure taxes every parcel equally and the second measure is an additional tax based on building square footage. Both measures will have a term of 8 years.

The public is invited to attend or watch the live broadcast on Cable Channel 27 and from the City website under videos/School Board meeting. 

8:45 PM  Piedmont Unified School Board meeting, June 12, 2019, Piedmont City Hall, 120 Vista Avenue.  

Staff recommendation to the School Board: 

Given the recent poll results and Piedmont’s current educational needs, District staff recommends that the Board of Education consider asking voters to support the renewal of its existing parcel tax to maintain current programs at the $2,709 flat rate (“Measure A”) and in a separate measure (“Measure B”) asking voters for an additional amount ($0.25 per square foot of building improvements) to ensure that Piedmont schools will be better able to attract and retain highly qualified teachers and educational support staff. Renewing the existing parcel tax (“Measure A”) would secure, $10.6 million in revenues.

Measure A is a continuation, no tax increase measure. We would also recommend an 8-year “duration” of the tax to provide a stable ongoing source of revenue to the District and fulfill the description as a pure continuation of what is in place today. Additionally, we recommend that a second measure (“Measure B”) be placed on the ballot. This second measure would be set at $0.25 per square foot of building improvements and would also have an 8-year duration. Passage of Measure B would result in an additional $2.6 million to the Piedmont schools. Importantly, the entire community would share the burden of an increased tax (although larger properties would pay more and smaller properties less – $139 per year for the smallest residential parcel). An added benefit is that if this tax were challenged from a legal standpoint, only the supplemental tax would be at legal risk. If both measures pass, the smallest square foot homeowner would pay $2,795 per year, and the largest square foot homeowner would pay $6,568 per year. Together, both measures would raise $13.3 million.

II. RECOMMENDATION: REVIEW AND ACTION District staff is recommending that the Board convene two (2) public hearings—June 12, 2019 and June 26, 2019—and adopt the two subsequent Board Resolutions that authorize both the renewal of a qualified special tax and a second qualified special tax for voter approval on November 5, 2019.

“The Board is requested to approve the attached Resolution 19-2018-19 “Proposing a Qualified Special Tax and Establishing Specifications of the Election Order Measure A”.

 The Resolution calls for an election on November 5, 2019 to extend the authorization of the Board to levy the current School Support Tax as permitted in Measure A for eight years starting on July 1, 2020.  The new Measure “A” is a renewal of the current School Support Tax—a uniform flat tax on all parcels.  The new Measure “A” will continue to provide an exemption for churches, public utilities, and those eligible for Social Security Supplemental Income.  The new Measure “A” also continues to permit an inflation growth rate of up to two (2) percent per year.

VI_E_BackgroundSchoolSupportTax_0

VI_E_Resolution19201819MeasureA

VI.F. Approve Resolution 20-2018-19 “Proposing a Qualified Special Tax and Establishing Specification of the Election Order Measure B”

9:05 PM

The Board is requested to approve the attached Resolution 20-2018-19 “Proposing a Qualified Special Tax and Establishing Specifications of the Election Order Measure B”.

The Resolution calls for an election on November 5, 2019 to authorize the Board to levy a new School Support Tax as permitted in Measure “B”  for eight years starting on July 1, 2020.  The new Measure “B” is a uniform tax applied at $0.25 per square foot of building improvements.  The new Measure “B” will continue to provide an exemption for churches, public utilities, and those eligible for Social Security Supplemental Income.  The new Measure “B” does not include an inflation growth rate.

VI_F_Resolution20201819MeasureBParcelTax_0