City Council Minutes 2020 06 16 - Laserfiche WebLink

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City Council Meeting Minutes June 16, 2020 Page 11 of 13 Staff has provided options to fund this project including using existing City funds, a property tax, a sales tax, or a climate tax. There are other programs the City could also look at but this is one that could be accomplished quickly without a large administrative burden. Staff is looking for answers to the following questions tonight: • Which type of tax should the City pursue? • Should there be different pricing for residential/commercial/industrial users? • What should be the maximum amount to be collected by the tax? • When should the City start collecting the tax? • Should there be a sunset date for the new tax? Mayor Stolzmann stated this is just on piece of a puzzle to lower our carbon emissions but it is a good price for Colorado RECs and will help up make some steps forward. Mayor Stolzmann stated what needs to be decided tonight is how we would pay for this and how long it would run. Mayor Pro Tern Maloney stated that while he is supportive of this idea there are a great many details that still need to be worked out before he is ready to support this. Mayor Stolzmann agreed an agreement would need to be worked out with Xcel to cover the details. Councilmember Fahey supported a property tax approach and feels this is a great way to get the whole city carbon neutral. Councilmember Lipton was concerned this would be one too many taxes on the ballot. He felt a property tax would hit the lowest income residents the hardest and gave no incentive to get people to reduce consumption. He prefers a climate tax if we do anything. He would like more information. Councilmember Dickinson supports the climate tax feeling that is the most equitable. He stated if it doesn't pass he would like it to be paid from the General Fund as it is that important a goal. Councilmember Lipton suggested if this is that important maybe the City should fund it from existing revenue. Mayor Stolzmann stated if the Council wants to pay for this from existing funds she would support that. Mayor Pro Tern Maloney stated he isn't prepared to support paying for this from the General Fund without more understanding of the total costs.