Taxes
& Fees FAQs
Costs in
Taxes and Fees of County Versus City Government for Stonecrest\
QUESTION:
I feel as if I pay more than enough in taxes already. Would it be
easier for the County or for the City to raise taxes and fees and
force me to pay them?
Both the County and the City are severely and almost completely
prevented from raising taxes or fees without a 2/3 vote by the voters.
This restriction on government was placed on the law books by two
propositions, one of which is the famous “Proposition 13”
passed by the voters in 1978 and the less well-known “Proposition
62” passed by the voters in 1986.
These two propositions
prevent government from increasing taxes without a vote of the people.
As a practical
matter, since you can vote for all five City Councilmembers, but
only one of the five County Supervisors and since the City of Santa
Clarita’s government structure is so much smaller than the
County’s, it is dramatically easier to monitor and effect
city spending and revenue policies than it is to effect the County’s.
As an example,
the City of Santa Clarita recently tried to go into bond indebtedness
for the purpose of generating money to buy open space and parkland
property. It went before the voters and the voters turned it down.
QUESTION:
Where would I pay less in taxes and fees, the County or the City?
Stonecrest will pay less in taxes and fees by joining the City of
Santa Clarita. This is surprising since government services are
greater in the city than in the County.
QUESTION: If Stonecrest annexes into the City of Santa Clarita,
will I still pay 5% tax on all of our utilities?
No. When Stonecrest becomes part of the City, the 5% tax we currently
pay on all of our utilities will be deleted immediately.
The City projects
a very conservative annual savings, on average, of $200 per household.
For many Stonecrest residents, the savings will be far higher than
$200 annually. During summer months, many of us have paid $600 to
$1,000 for electric bills covering July, August, and September.
On electricity alone, the 5% utility tax would amount to $130 just
for those three months.
QUESTION:
What about Business Taxes?
The County
attempts to collect a business license fee from anyone who has a
home-based business. The City of Santa Clarita charges no such fee.
QUESTION:
What about special fees, such as National Pollution Discharge Elimination
System (or NPDES)? Isn’t that $24 a year in the City versus
$0 in the County?
No. In the City, it is an itemized tax. In the County, the fee is
charged also. It is just added into the General Property Tax Bill
which the County is able to collect but which the City does not
collect. As with so many other “hidden” charges, the
County does not list all the things paid for as part of your complete
Property Tax Payment.
QUESTION: What about Landscape Maintenance District Fees?
They are essentially the same in both the City and the County. Under
some scenarios, the City has said it will impose a cost of living
increase. The County is silent about whether or not they will charge
more as cost increase.
The difference
between the two government areas is insignificant. Any increase
in city fees in this one area is dramatically overshadowed by all
the other savings.
There is a practical
difference in favor of the City. If the City attempts to raise our
fee, and we don’t like it, we can storm city hall -- with
a high degree of confidence that we will prevail. “Storming
the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors” is an exercise
in futility.
As an example,
over 800 Santa Clarita residents filled the Los Angeles County Supervisors’
Hearing Room to overflowing, in opposition to the mega sand and
gravel mine. The supervisors still approved the mine on a 3 to 2
vote.
QUESTION:
What about Trash Collection Fees?
Trash Collection Fees are significantly lower in the City than they
are in County. Upon annexation, everyone’s monthly trash fee
will go down.
QUESTION:
What about fees for Parks and Recreation Services?
The City just announced a policy to charge non-city residents for
the full cost of parks and recreation services that are subsidized
for city residents.
This fee which
can be as much as $30 per program per participant will not be charged
to any Stonecrest resident if annexation is approved.
QUESTION:
Stonecrest residents spend a lot of money in the City of Santa Clarita.
Can we get any of it back in the form of better government services?
If we aren’t in the City, we have no claim to city services.
Of course, the City has invested nearly 6 million dollars to defend
us and everyone else in Santa Clarita from the damage from the mega
mine even though we aren’t city residents yet.
QUESTION:
Does the County give us a dollar in services for every dollar we
spend in county property tax?
In general,
getting tax money to its community of origin has been the main reason
for the formation of cities all around Los Angeles County. People
are sometimes surprised to learn that there are actually 88 full
independent cities located in Los Angeles County. Before the laws
changed, making new cities hard to form, six new cities formed in
Los Angeles County between 1985 and 1995. Those new cities are Agoura
Hills, West Hollywood, Santa Clarita, Diamond Bar, Malibu, and Calabasas.
In every case,
the newly incorporated cities found that substantial, additional
revenue became available in the local area when the money was no
longer being collected and distributed by the County first.
Stonecrest will
get a lot more in government services through local government in
Santa Clarita than from the huge bureaucracy of Los Angeles County.
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