Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Minutes - City Council - Meeting Date: 4/20/2010 (3) *PLEASE NOTE: Since the Glendale City Council does not take formal action at the Workshops,Workshop minutes are not approved by the City Council. irg& GLS P ' MINUTES OF THE GLENDALE CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP SESSION Council Chambers—Workshop Room 5850 West Glendale Avenue April 20, 2010 1:30 p.m. PRESENT: Mayor Elaine M. Scruggs, Vice Mayor Manuel D. Martinez, and Councilmembers Joyce V. Clark, Steven E. Frate, David M. Goulet, Yvonne J. Knaack, and H. Phillip Lieberman ALSO PRESENT: Ed Beasley, City Manager; Pam Kavanaugh, Assistant City Manager; Craig Tindall, City Attorney; and Pamela Hanna, City Clerk 1. 2010 STATE LEGISLATIVE UPDATE CITY STAFF PRESENTING THIS ITEM: Brent Stoddard, Intergovernmental Programs Director, Ryan Peters, Intergovernmental Programs Administrator and Jenna Goad, Intergovernmental Programs Administrator The 2010 state legislative agenda provides the policy framework by which Intergovernmental Programs staff engages on state legislative issues. Throughout the 2010 legislative session, policy direction will be sought on proposed statutory changes which fall under the adopted Council policy statements relating to the financial stability of the city, public safety issues, promoting economic development, managing growth and preserving neighborhoods. The Intergovernmental Programs staff recommends prioritizing the state legislative agenda to a few key issues to allow the city to have a stronger, more consistent message on the items of greatest priority. The proposed key priority issues for consideration are described in the attached report. The legislative agenda defines the city's priorities for the upcoming session and will guide the city's lobbying activities at the Arizona State Legislature. The Intergovernmental. Programs staff will update Council on a regular basis throughout the session for guidance on bills and amendments that may be introduced. The city's legislative agenda is a flexible document and may change, based on activities at the Legislature and Council direction. On January 19, 2010, the Intergovernmental Programs department presented the 2010 State Legislative Agenda and Legislative Update. The priorities and principles of Glendale's 2010 state legislative agenda provide the venue for the city to identify and engage on state legislative issues. The key principles of the state legislative agenda are: to preserve and enhance the city's ability to deliver quality and cost effective services to citizens and visitors; to address quality of life issues for Glendale residents, and to enhance the City Council's ability to serve the community by retaining local decision making authority and maintaining state legislative and voter commitments for revenue sources. Staff is requesting Council to provide policy guidance on the proposed state legislative issues. Mr. Brent Stoddard, Intergovernmental Programs Director, stated today marked the 100th day of the regular session. He noted there have been almost 1,400 bills introduced during this session with 83 signed by the Governor and 3 bills vetoed. He indicated that the legislature has recently finished two special sessions. The seventh special session was used to complete the 2010 and 2011 State budgets. Additionally, in the 8th special session, the Governor was given authority to enter into a lawsuit against the recently enacted federal health care reform bill. He explained that the midyear fiscal year 2010 budget was already running a $749 million dollars deficit. In order to balance that deficit, they used a series of rollovers, agency spending reductions and fund sweeps that had remaining balances. For the fiscal year 2011 budget shortfall of$2.65 billion, they relied on the same rollovers, agency reduction and fund sweeps; however, they also built into the budget certain revenue assumptions which will require voter approval including $918 million from a proposed 3 year 1-cent state sales tax increase which will be on the May 18, 2010 ballot as Proposition 100. Since the budget was completed early in the seventh special session, they will be wrapping up the regular session very quickly, possibly ending in the last week of April or first week of May. Mr. Stoddard provided an update on several pieces of legislation that were still in process which will have an impact on the city. The Maricopa County Library District Tax levies a property tax on all Maricopa County residents to fund county library services. Last year, the City of Glendale residents paid approximately $774,000 into the system and the city received approximately $40,000 in ancillary benefits. He explained that this was a very inequitable situation. He explained that he has been working with larger cities in Maricopa County to bring forth Senate bill 1373 which would have allowed 75% of the funds City residents pay to come back to the cities to be used for library services. However, because of concerns and scare tactics raised by the County Library leaders, the bill was pulled from the legislature's committee agenda. He indicated they were working on amended similar language into Senate bill 1010, however, because of legislative committee deadlines, they ran out of time. Consequently, Senator Linda Gray agreed to have an informational hearing in her committee on this matter. He explained that although they were unable to obtain a formal hearing on the bill, they were successful in the educational outreach they were able to make with members. He continued his presentation on House bill 2250, Arizona Jobs Recovery Act. He explained this bill has numerous fiscal tax policy implications along with economic development tools. Staff has worked very hard to minimize the impact of the tax policies that appeared in the original version of the bill and was glad to report that the most harmful provisions have been removed. This includes, completely removing the proposed individual income tax reductions. It was also amended to maintain the 20% assessment ratio for any bonds that the city has authorized. Additionally, it was agreed that there would be a gradual phase down of the corporate income tax from 6.9%to 5% instead of doing it all in one year. Staff recommends changing from an opposing position to a neutral position and to continue to monitor the bill since there is still a lot of work to be done on this bill. He stated that under the Land Use bills both House bill 2297 and Senate bill 1109 provide that if a land owner asks the federal government to create a federal enclave with its property that local municipalities and the State will be ensured a voice and a part in the process. He stated that House bill 2297 passed the House but was unable to move forward in the Senate; however, similar language was amended onto Senate bill 1109, which passed the House on Tuesday and is now awaiting action in the Senate. Staff has been asking neighborhood leaders and residents to contact Senate leaders to encourage them to let the bill go to a vote of the Senate. Mr. Ryan Peters, Intergovernmental Programs Administrator, stated that protecting Arizona's military installations continues to be a top priority for the legislature and policy makers around the state. Consequently, Senate bill 1410 and 1047 are companion measures that are intended to serve as another tool for protecting their military installations. Senate bill 1410 includes provisions for exchanging state trust lands under narrowly defined conditions to protect military bases. Under this bill, any exchange of land must first be approved by the voters. Ms. Jenna Goad, Intergovernmental Programs Administrator, reported on the status of the pay loan industry. The current authority for the industry is set to expire on June 30, 2010. The industry has made several attempts to get the authority extended; however, all attempts thus far have failed. As a result, starting July 1st the industry will have a maximum interest rate of 36% which is the same rate as traditional banks charge. Staff will continue to monitor. Mr. Stoddard stated that this week, discussions of immigration reform, making its way through the legislative process, has dominated the local and national news. Senate bill 1070 passed the Senate yesterday and is being transmitted to the Governor. This bill will require significant legal analysis to understand the final implications. The major provisions included in this bill are new laws that prohibit officials from limiting or restricting the enforcement of federal immigration laws. It allows Arizona resident to sue an official or agency that adopts or implements a policy or practice that does so. It requires law enforcement to make a reasonable attempt"when practicable" to determine the immigration status of a person if reasonable suspicion exists that the person is in the U.S. illegally. It makes it a state crime to be an illegal immigrant, by creating a state charge of"willful failure to complete or carry an alien registration document". It allows law enforcement to stop a driver if there is reasonable suspicion that the driver is in violation of human-smuggling and has violated any civil traffic law. Lastly, it makes it a class 1 misdemeanor to pick up a day laborer for work if the vehicle impedes traffic while doing so or to be picked up as a day laborer if the vehicle they get into is impeding traffic. The Governor will have five days to make a decision to veto, sign or allow the bill to go into law without her signature. Mr. Peters reported on Senate bill 1334 which would mandate a statewide ban on texting while driving. Under the bill a person will be subject to a $50 dollar civil penalty for violation and $200 should the person be involved in an accident and found to be texting. He explained that despite the many hurdles, the bill has advanced further this year than years past. The bill passed the Senate only to be stop in the House and Transportation Committee. Staff will continue to monitor this situation. He encouraged anyone interested in this issue to visit a website called "distraction.gov" for more information. Vice Mayor Martinez asked who was opposing this bill. Mr. Peters explained that there is a general sentiment that it would be difficult to ascertain when people were actually texting. Mr. Stoddard stated that some comments in opposition to the bill have reflected that there were already several driver distraction laws on the books. Vice Mayor Martinez remarked he was nearly sideswiped last week on 75th Avenue and saw that the driver was still texting after the near accident. He supports a statewide ban. Mr. Stoddard explained the Sports Authority Surcharge. He stated it was widely known that legislation was going to be introduced on behalf of the City of Mesa to finance a new facility for the Chicago Cubs. In mid-February, that legislation was brought forth and included an 8%ticket surcharge on all spring training tickets, as well as a dollar increase to the car rental surcharge tax. He indicated that the bill met with swift and severe opposition from the major league baseball owners and many different entities in the tourism industry. The sponsor of the bill agreed to remove the provisions for the ticket surcharge as well as the car rental fee. The sponsors also pledged that the bill would not move forward unless there was an agreement among the major league baseball owners and other stakeholders. Staff will continue to monitor the situation as per Councils direction to make sure Glendale has a seat at the table. Staff will report any new findings. Councilmember Clark asked for clarification on the penalty fines regarding the immigration reform bill. Mr. Stoddard stated that the bill outlines a series of fines including penalties of $1,000 not to exceed $5,000 for each day a policy remains in effect or has been found in violation of the provisions of the law. Councilmember Clark remarked that it would be applicable to municipalities. She asked who would determine if a municipality was out of compliance. Mr. Craig Tindall, City Attorney, stated the provision allows for the citizen's lawsuit to be brought and the courts would decide on the fines. Councilmember Clark indicated that some people were already uncomfortable with elements of the bill and may seek to make changes. Councilmember Clark requested additional information be explained on Senate bill 1109. Mr. Stoddard explained that Senate bill 1109 provides that if a land owner asks the federal government to create a federal enclave with its property that local municipalities and the State will be ensured a voice and a part in the process. He asked anyone interested to call 602-926- 5999 to encourage the Senate leadership to let the bill come forward for a full vote of the Senate. As there were no further comments, Mayor Scruggs adjourned the meeting. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 2:10 p.m.