The city has released ballot language on its website for the local sales tax measure the Orange City Council voted earlier this month to put before voters in November.
Orange is calling its proposal to add a half-cent sales tax to raise local revenue over the next decade the “City of Orange Public Safety and City Services Measure.” If approved by Orange voters it will raise the sale tax on purchases in town from 7.75% to 8.25%.
City officials say the tax bump, if approved, would generate approximately $19 million per year until the tax sunsets after 10 years. Without the money, officials say Orange’s annual deficit could grow to $26 million by 2029, yet the city expects to run out of reserve funding in 18 to 24 months if it maintains current service levels and does not receive additional revenue.
City leaders say Orange began running a structural deficit during the Great Recession despite making $91 million worth of departmental operating cuts and deferring $30 million of maintenance since 2008.
“Like many California cities, Orange’s key sources of revenue such as sales and property taxes have not kept pace with the rising costs of maintaining city services,” officials say on a new city website dedicated to explaining the tax measure. “Our city’s budget challenges aren’t a new problem. Orange projected a $7.7 million deficit as far back as Fiscal Year 2010-2011. Despite annual budget balancing measures, such as staffing cuts and operating cost reductions, as well as delaying maintenance on city infrastructure, the deficit has recently grown much larger with an estimated $7-11 million deficit for the upcoming fiscal year and growing to $26 million in five years.”
According to that estimate, not even $19 million from the half-cent sales tax would completely bridge the gap between city revenue and expenses in 2029.
In addition, city officials add that forecasts anticipate Orange needing more than $80 million “in the near future” for civic…
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