12-A
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
ATTENTION: Jeffrey L. Stewart, City Manager
FROM: Joel Hockman, Director of Public Safety
SUBJECT: Consideration and possible action to conduct the annual public hearing to consider whether the 5% Utility Users’ Tax (UUT) should continue in effect or be modified or repealed.
DATE: December 11, 2023
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Ordinance No. 818 requires the City Council to hold an annual public hearing in December regarding whether the Utility Users’ Tax (UUT) should continue in effect or be modified or repealed.
RECOMMENDATION TO CITY COUNCIL
1) Open the public hearing; take testimonial and documentary evidence; and after considering the evidence, approve the continuance of the UUT and fund the Community Policing Program with revenues generated from the UUT; or
2) Alternatively, discuss and take other action related to this item.
FISCAL IMPACT
The City projects that the UUT revenue will be approximately $3,900,000 for fiscal year 2023-2024.
PUBLIC NOTICE
On Friday, December 1, 2023, a Public Hearing Notice was published in the Los Cerritos Community News newspaper.
DISCUSSION
In 1997, voters approved a utility users tax equal to five percent (5%) of the gross charges made to each service user in the City for telephone (including cell phones), electricity, and natural gas.
1 Staff Report – Annual Public Hearing Re: Utility Users’ Tax December 11, 2023
DISCUSSION – Continued
Section 4 of Ordinance No. 818 requires the City Council to conduct a public hearing each December to consider whether to continue, amend, or repeal the UUT.
The current projection of UUT for fiscal year 2023-2024 is $3,900,000 ($1,500,000 below the estimated CPI growth and $2,700,000 below the combined estimated CPI and population growth). In a long-term view between 1994-1995 and 2022-2023 fiscal years, the total cumulative amount of UUT collected was $10,800,000 below the level of CPI growth and $31,200,000 below the level of combined CPI and population growth. As one can imagine, the measurement of CPI growth alone does not address the overall community policing needs arising from the City’s population growth of approximately 12,400 residents during the same period.
ATTACHMENTS
Chart – UUT Revenues ................................................................................................... 3 Chart – Part 1 Crime Rate 1975 – October 2023 ............................................................ 4 2 Utility Users Tax Revenues(FY 1994-95 to FY 2022-23)$2,000,000$3,000,000$4,000,000$5,000,000$6,000,000$7,000,00094-9595-9696-9797-9898-9999-0000-0101-0202-0303-0404-0505-0606-0707-0808-0909-1010-1111-1212-1313-1414-1515-1616-1717-1818-1919-2020-2121-2222-23CPI &PopulationCPIActual https://bellflowergcc.sharepoint.com/sites/fin/Shared Documents/AA/UUT_TUUTOB/Staff Reports to PSRC/SR - Public Hearing for UUT 12-11-23 - Attachment.xlsx3
Bellflower Part 1 Crime Rate 1993 – October 2023 (30-Year Trend)
Part 1 Crime includes homicide, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, residential and non -residential burglary, vehicle burglary, larceny and theft, grand theft automobile, and arson. Data for 1979 through 1990 is based on the fiscal year ending on June 30 of the year indicated, prior and thereafter by calendar year.
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