Report Prepared by: Jennifer Levesque, Assistant City Clerk, City Clerk’s Office
Title
SUBJECT: Adoption of a Resolution for Calling a Special Election for March 5, 2024 for the Purpose of Placing a Ballot Measure Before the Voters to Renew the Existing Half Cent Sales Tax for Public Safety and Roads and Requesting the Merced County Board of Supervisors to Consolidate Said Election with the Statewide Primary Election Being Held on the Same Date
REPORT IN BRIEF
Considers adopting a Resolution Calling a March 5, 2024 Special Municipal Election for the purpose of placing a measure on the ballot regarding the renewal of a half-cent sales tax for public safety and roads and requesting the County Board of Supervisors to consolidate the City's election with the Statewide Primary Election being held on the same date.
RECOMMENDATION
City Council - Adopt a motion:
A. Adopting Resolution 2023-73, a Resolution of the City Council of the City of Merced, California, calling a Special Municipal Election to be held on March 5, 2024, for the Purpose of Submitting a Ballot Measure to renew the half cent sales tax for public safety and roads; and, requesting that the Board of Supervisors of the County of Merced, California provide for the consolidation of a Special Municipal Election and a Ballot Measure with the Statewide Primary Election to be held on March 5, 2024; and,
B. Approving the form and ballot question of the Citizen initiative Measure; and,
C. Directing the City Manager/City Clerk and the City Attorney’s Office to prepare and execute documents appropriate to carry out the tasks necessary for the Special Municipal Election and to take actions related thereto.
Body
ALTERNATIVES
1. Approve, as recommended by staff; or,
2. Approve, subject to other than recommended by staff (identify specific findings and/or conditions amended to be addressed in the motion); or,
3. Deny; or,
4. Refer to staff for reconsideration of specific items (specific items to be addressed in the motion); or,
5. Continue to a future meeting (date and time to be specified in the motion).
AUTHORITY
Charter of the City of Merced, Sections 400 and 1000; and,
California Elections Code Section 10403
CITY COUNCIL PRIORITIES
Placing a Ballot Measure on the March 2024 Primary to renew the half cent sales tax for public safety and roads.
DISCUSSION
At the July 5, 2022, City Council meeting, staff presented Resolution 2022-43 to call for a General Municipal Election to place a proposed Ballot Measure to extend the half-cent sales tax without a sunset date for the November 8, 2022 election. A motion was made by Council Member Perez and a second by Council Member Shelton, the motion failed. During the August 1, 2022, City Council Meeting, Mayor Serratto as part of the Request to Add Item to Future Agenda portion of the agenda, requested to call a Special Meeting for Council to reconsider placing the renewal of a half-cent sales tax on the ballot.
The City Council held a Special Meeting on August 8, 2022, to reconsider placing the renewal of a half-cent sales tax. A motion was made by Mayor Pro Tempore Blake and a second by Council Member Shelton, the motion failed to gain five affirmative votes needed.
A public initiative process was started by the Citizens for a Safer Merced and a notice of intent to circulate a petition was received by the Clerk’s Office on March 20, 2023. The Citizens for a Safer Merced gathered signatures from City of Merced residents and submitted their petitions to the City Clerk’s Office on August 21, 2023. The City Clerk’s Office then began the “raw” count process and counted approximately 5,122 signatures. On August 22, 2023, the City Clerk’s Office turned in all petitions to the Merced County Registrar of Voters (ROV) for the official count.
In order to qualify and be placed on the ballot, the Citizens for a Safer Merced needed to have 3,988 valid signatures. In total, the ROV counted 5,204 signatures. On September 15, 2023, the ROV notified the City Clerk and City Manager’s Office that the threshold number of valid signatures had been reached. On September 19, 2023, the ROV sent an email with a copy of the signature verification certificate confirming that 3,993 signatures had been found to be sufficient, meeting the requirement for placing the measure on the ballot.
Per Election Code section 9211 and 9115(f), the certificate of sufficiency will be presented to the City Council at its next regular meeting which is scheduled for October 2, 2023. Staff will present the Certificate of Sufficiency to Council along with a Resolution Calling for an Election and to Consolidate the Election with the Merced County Board of Supervisors.
Under Elections Code Section 9215, upon presentation of the Certificate of Sufficiency, the City Council has a mandatory duty to submit the measure, without alteration, to the voters. The procedure for submitting the measure to the voters is to adopt a resolution requesting the Registrar of Voters to call for a special election to be consolidated with the Statewide Primary Election on March 5, 2024 and to place the measure on the ballot for that election.
The City has consistently recognized a cost savings in previous years by consolidating the General Municipal Election with the Consolidated District Election and the Unified District Election conducted by the Merced County Elections Office. The County has trained staff and volunteers, in addition to the necessary equipment, software, and locations to conduct elections efficiently and economically. Therefore, staff recommends that the City Council call for the Special Municipal Election on March 5, 2024 and consolidate the Special Municipal Election with the Statewide Primary Election on March 5, 2024, per the resolution as Attachment 2.
IMPACT ON CITY RESOURCES
The Registrar of Voters has provided an estimate to consolidate at $20,962.80. FY 2023-24 Fund 2001 Measure C adopted budget included $70,000 for the cost of the ballot measure.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Certificate of Sufficiency
2. Resolution 2023-73 (Calling the Election and Consolidating the Election)