City Council Minutes 2022 08 16 - Laserfiche WebLink

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City Council Meeting Minutes August 16, 2022 Page 3 of 9 Acting City Manager Davis reminded everyone of the upcoming Fall Festival and Labor Day Parade and noted volunteers are still needed. She reminded everyone the Recreation Center will be closed this next week for maintenance. She stated the coordinated Marshall Fire debris removal is now complete. The navigator program is now running in the White House next to City Hall to help people with their rebuilding process. DOLA is holding a meeting tomorrow at the Rec Center to get input from residents on how to spend disaster recovery funding. REGULAR BUSINESS DISCUSSION/DIRECTION — USE TAX GRANT PROGRAM Mayor Stolzmann introduced the item. Councilmember Fahey stated she would be a recipient of this program should it be approved. She therefore recused herself from the discussion and left the room. Acting City Manager Davis stated this proposal is in response to direction from Council and is a recommended framework for a program to address the cost of the use tax for those rebuilding from the Marshall Fire, specifically those that may be underinsured. She noted staff also has another goal of ensuring the fiscal stability of the City and the requirements for the voter -approved Use Tax. Davis noted staff is still determining the impacts to the City's budget related to damage to roads, sidewalks, and vegetation, as well as other costs that may not be fully covered by FEMA. Staff is hoping to create a program that is easily accessible to residents and relatively easy for staff to manage. Acting City Manager Davis reviewed the Use Tax and how it normally works. Use tax is collected on construction materials by the City at the time of building permit. It replaces the collection of sales tax at time of sale and allows the City to keep the tax, rather than the jurisdiction where purchase occurs. Use taxes go into restricted funds, therefore any rebates of use taxes must come from the General Fund. She reviewed how the use tax money is split between the Capital Improvements Fund, the Historic Preservation Fund, the Open Space and Parks Fund, and the Recreation Center and Memory Square Pool maintenance fund. Planning Manager Lisa Ritchie reviewed how Permit Valuation is determined. She stated that at the time of building permit the applicant includes a valuation of the project. The City's fee schedule includes a $180 per sq ft minimum valuation for single family homes. Due to the cost of construction at this time, the average valuation will likely be higher. Use taxes are paid on 50% of the valuation as it assumes 50% of the valuation is for materials (use tax applies) and 50% is labor (no tax).