The Long Beach City Council could soon vote to formally oppose a state ballot measure that would make it harder to impose taxes and fees in the future.
Meanwhile, though, the council will wait to chime in on another proposed law that would raise wages for health care workers statewide.
The council’s Intergovernmental Affairs Committee met Tuesday and was updated on the two issues, with the committee voting to recommend opposing the Taxpayer Protection and Government Accountability Act initiative, a ballot initiative that many believe would reduce both the state and local governments’ ability to collect revenue and would ultimately shrink budgets.
The issue has qualified for the November 2024 ballot and would require state lawmakers to pass new taxes with two-thirds of both houses before submitting the tax to voters, and it would require a majority of the state to also vote in favor before the taxes could take hold.
Locally, it would require “special taxes” to pass by a two-thirds vote and could force cities to prove that fees and fines it charges are actually based on how much it costs the city to provide a service.
Long Beach Government Affairs Manager Tyler Bonanno-Curley told the committee Tuesday that while the city sets its fees at the cost of providing the service, the initiative would set a “higher bar” and the city could have to prove it’s the lowest actual charge it needs to assess.
“It could open up legal challenges to existing fees,” he said.
The initiative is...
In a statement, the organisation said the questions circulating on social media as 'leaked SSC question papers' are actually taken from model test papers. Its investigation found that these model ...