On Tuesday evening the SLO City Council considered draft ballot language on the extension of Measure Y, the city’s half-cent sales tax. Earlier Tuesday the San Luis Obispo Downtown Association sent a letter to the city council in support of a general-purpose tax revenue measure being placed on the November ballot with an eight year sunset clause. In the letter the Downtown Association stated its support of the San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce’s position that there should be a specific citizen oversight committee created, comprised of individuals with related professional expertise, to create greater transparency in communicating with the public how the sales tax funds are being used.
Both the Chamber and Downtown Association are asking for a commitment by the entire city council to adopt a “fiscal responsibility philosophy” that will help guide long-term policies and address issues such as employee costs, increasing pension costs and unfunded liabilities. An additional tool such as an online municipal metrics dashboard is being proposed by both organizations to provide insight into how all city funds are utilized and how resident priorities are being addressed throughout each future budget cycle.
To read the statements forwarded to the San Luis Obispo City Council from the SLO Chamber click here, and from the Downtown Association, click here.