The town of Atherton, in San Mateo County, is using tax dollars to promote two parcel tax measures on the November 3 ballot. A publication sent to all residents is devoted to the measures, and includes a list of recently completed community projects funded by parcel tax revenue, complete with color photos. The issue also features a long list of services provided by police officers.
The campaign-style mailer says: "If the parcel tax is renewed at its current rate level for the next four years, the Town will continue to use its revenues for public safety, police services, street repairs, and drainage improvements."
The Almanac newspaper writes: "This month's Athertonian newsletter is pretty much a one-issue issue. Instead of the usual hodgepodge of articles on town activities and projects, it's all about the renewal of the parcel tax on the November ballot as Measures S and T. If there's anyone in town who is wondering exactly what gets funded with the $750-per-parcel annual tax, it's all spelled out in the fall edition of the Athertonian, along with voter information."
(Cal-Tax: This is the latest in a long line of examples of local governments using tax dollars to campaign for higher taxes. While the town's mailer stops just short of asking residents to vote "yes" on the measures, it clearly is intended to build support. The Los Angeles Times put it best in an October 2008 editorial blasting local governments for this sort of campaigning, specifically criticizing a Los Angeles school board for distributing T-shirts to promote a $7 billion construction bond. The newspaper wrote: "If the words 'Measure Q' on T-shirts aren't meant to encourage people to vote yes, then surely all those lawn signs that say 'Obama-Biden '08' are just there to let you know who's on the ballot. What nonsense. Voters may go for many of the local measures on the Nov. 4 ballot, but shady tactics with public money will just make it harder to win their trust the next time cities, school boards and other agencies come asking for more.") (Sources: The Almanac, October 6; Athertonian, Fall 2009.)
Cal-TaxReports, October 13, 2009
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