League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
	Contra Costa County, CA November 8, 2011 Election
	Measure G Road and Drain Reconstruction City of Lafayette Parcel Tax - 2/3 Approval Required Fail: 3683 / 57.63% Yes votes ...... 2708 / 42.37% No votes See Also: Index of all Measures

Arguments For Measure G

Arguments Against Measure G

Please join a community-wide coalition of residents and organizations + including the Lafayette Chamber of Commerce, the Lafayette Homeowners Council and the Lafayette Taxpayers Association + in supporting Measure G and completing the repair of Lafayette's public roads. Twenty-five percent of Lafayette's roads and drains remain in failed condition, and the City does not have the funds to fix them. Why? Although Lafayette residents pay the same 1% assessed valuation property tax rate as do residents elsewhere, Lafayette receives approximately half of what other Contra Costa cities receive from the State. This situation was created by Lafayette's incorporation as a "No Property Tax City" in 1968 and by Proposition 13 and related legislation in 1978. Without this funding, Lafayette's roads have deteriorated since 1968. In 1995, Lafayette residents passed a bond measure to fix the major roads. Those funds were stretched to pave more roads than originally anticipated, but many residential roads remain unrepaired. We need to finish the job so all residents have good roads. The funds from this measure, together with funds committed by the City Council, will enable the City to repair the remaining failed roads in ten years. This measure will provide a stable source of funding for our City's infrastructure: Pay-as-you-go + funds applied directly to road repair No bonds; no debt; no interest payments Ten years maximum Terminates in less than ten years if roads repaired sooner All money stays in Lafayette, not one dollar can be taken by the state An independent committee will ensure funds are spent as promised and all failed roads are repaired. Good roads raise property values, improve safety for all residents, and reduce vehicle costs. All our residents deserve good roads. Please vote YES on Measure G! Rebuttal to Arguments For Tax proponents claim there are no bonds, debt or interest. That totally contradicts Measure G's language. It allows proceeds from this tax to pay interest, penalties, bonds, anything related to roads. The 1995 road bond payments could be included. $8,500,000 remains unpaid. Read Measure G's full text. It's only available by request. Would you take the word of politicians over Measure G's legally binding language? If you find the full text too complicated: VOTE NO! The City of Lafayette imported a San Diego lawyer to delete 65 truthful words from the argument against the failed 2007 road tax. Would you trust people who would spend $13,400 in taxpayer's money to cover up the truth? The City of Lafayette is $52,400,000 in debt. They "borrowed" $5,200,000 from the general fund for Redevelopment. Redevelopment isn't making payments on six of their debts. The Interest is accruing at $1,633,889 annually. They've depleted the general fund by lending to Redevelopment while bloated administration expenses run $2,887,241 annually. Now they want more from us? We never voted for Redevelopment or new council chambers. Homes on patched dead end streets sell for premium prices. Homes on well paved major roads sell at discount prices. "Slow Down" signs are everywhere. Repaving encourages speeding. Contrary to their title: The Lafayette Taxpayers Association has supported five City tax measures. They have remained silent while the City Council recklessly spent Redevelopment deeply into debt. Politicians will never stop asking for higher taxes. Please stop voting for them. Arguments In Favor Submitted By Lafayette Chamber of Commerce, Stephen A. Cortese, President Carl Anduri, Mayor, City of Lafayette Thomas F. Mulvaney, President, Acalanes Union High School District Governing Board Lafayette Taxpayers Assn., Donald Lively, Exec Director Lafayette Homeowners Council, Marie Corlett Blits, President Anne F. Grodin, Former Mayor Judy Carney, Past Lafayette Citizen of the Year Don Tatzin, Councilmember, City of Lafayette Daniel Deitrick, Chair, Lafayette Finance Committee, City of Lafayette Ivor Samson, Former Mayor, City of Lafayette

The City council says they can't afford road repair. Add the numbers up to see where the politician's interest is.. The City Manager is paid $310,556.42 annually. They recently spent $54,636,150 for their council chambers. They borrowed $5,200,000 from the general fund for it. They have $4,081,654 in their budget to convert the old library into city offices. They spent $2,250,000 for a parking lot on Moraga Road, that's likely to become a parking structure. The day they decided to tax you more for roads, they squandered $25,800 for a study for a $322,226 bike park. Their frivolous spending never stops.. With spending like this, why are they demanding people to give more? The economy is bad. Homes are being foreclosed. Their excuse is because some people don't like patched streets in front of their homes. Should people cut back on food and medicine to pay for this tax? Taxes for road repair are already collected on fuel, vehicles, sales, property and the 1995 road and drain 30 year bond. We don't know what streets will benefit from this tax. Lafayette's major streets are in good condition. Many short dead end streets were resurfaced in July. Lafayette has 283 private roads. Some are in terrible condition. Their residents will be gouged and still have to raise money to fix their own street. The residents of Birdhaven Court raised money to have their street rebuilt. The city took their money and repaved their street. It was rebuilt 8 years later at taxpayer expense. The only way to assure having your street repaved is to raise the money yourself. The only thing this tax assures, is that politicians will have more of your money to spend. If you vote for any tax, it's 100% certain they will ask for more. Rebuttal to Arguments Against Lafayette residents who know the facts support Measure G. Great schools, and good roads, enhance property values. Measure G fixes Lafayette's failed public roads and drains in ten years or less. Residents will no longer endure the potholes and local flooding that have frustrated them for decades. The problem, if not fixed now, will only get worse and become more expensive. Once the roads are fixed, ongoing revenues can fund needed maintenance. In 2008, an independent committee of Lafayette citizens who are financial professionals reviewed City expenditures and concluded that the City effectively and prudently manages its resources. The City continues to act prudently. To maintain a balanced budget in a worsening economy, the City reduced staff and cut annual expenses by over $500,000 in late 2010. The committee also stated that while Lafayette can commit $20 million over the next 10 years for road repair, additional revenue is needed to complete the $30 million amount required. Measure G completes the funding gap and is a fair and effective plan. Passing Measure G will enhance property values, fix our failed roads and drains, and treat all residents who have not had their roads and drains fixed equally with those who have. Voting Yes on Measure G is the best and right thing to do for our community. For more information please go to http://www.fixourroads.net. Arguments Against Submitted By Bruce R. Peterson, Private Citizen W Gordon Mattonen, Private Citizen