Union City residents will decide this November whether or not to pass a Utility Users Tax (UUT). The city council on July 14 voted to place the measure on the ballot. It asks residents if they want to extend the current UUT, which is 5%, for nine more years.
Residents who use electricity, natural gas, cell phones, internet and cable, including TV streaming services, are paying for the UUT through their monthly bills. Exemptions from the tax are given to low-income residents and seniors over 70.
The UUT would bring $7 million to the city’s general fund every year. That amount is 8.5% of the city’s general fund. The general fund is spent on public safety (police and fire), road maintenance, youth activities and senior services. Over 60% of the general fund is for police and fire services alone.
City manager Joan Malloy at the city council meeting started her presentation by talking about the history of how cities usually fund their services. She talked about Prop 13, a citizen-led ballot measure passed in 1978, that capped property taxes. Malloy said that after it passed, over nine cities lost 40% of their revenue. She said property taxes have been a primary source of revenue for cities to fund essential services.
