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File Number: 14-086 <br />TO: City Council <br />FROM: Chris Zapata <br />City Manager <br />City of San Leandro <br />Meeting Date: March 17, 2014 <br />BY: City Council <br />FINANCE REVIEW: Not Applicable <br />Staff Report <br />Agenda Section: CONSENT CALENDAR <br />Agenda Number: 8.F. <br />TITLE: Staff Report for Resolution Supporting Efforts to Reform Proposition 13 <br />SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS <br />Per direction provided at the February 18, 2014 Council meeting, staff presents for Council <br />consideration the attached resolution supporting efforts to reform Proposition 13 and provide <br />direction to staff. <br />BACKGROUND <br />At the February 18, 2014 Council meeting, representatives from Evolve <br /><http://www.evolve-ca.org/city councils?utm campaign=official 1 &utm medium=email&utm <br />source=evolve> requested during public comments that the City Council consider adopting a <br />resolution supporting efforts to seek voter authorization for changes to the property tax <br />limitations imposed by Proposition 13. Specifically, this organization is seeking to allow for the <br />regular reassessment of commercially -zoned properties at market rates, rather than limiting <br />those assessments based on the restrictions imposed by Proposition 13, which was adopted <br />by voters in 1978. Organizers of this effort assert that such a "split roll" also would exempt <br />small businesses. Their stated intention is to develop a coalition of organizations supporting <br />these efforts and subsequently circulate for signatures a draft ballot initiative envisioned for <br />the 2016 statewide ballot. The specific details of this proposed initiative and draft ballot <br />language have not yet been developed. <br />According to information presented by proponents of this effort, before Proposition 13 passed, <br />40% of local property tax revenue came from non-residential commercial property. Today, <br />commercial property accounts for 28% of California's property tax revenue, while home and <br />apartment owners account for 72% of the statewide property taxes. As such, proponents <br />argue that this reform effort will serve to rebalance the property tax burden. <br />However, opponents of these efforts argue that the longstanding commercial property tax gap <br />is being rapidly reduced by natural turnover of properties in the market. Additionally, although <br />City of San Leandro Page 1 Printed on 3/11/2014 <br />