The agenda for the upcoming meeting is very brief, containing only one regular item. However, this does not necessarily indicate that the meeting will be short. The item on the agenda is to discuss the potential inclusion of a tax proposal on the November ballot. This discussion was requested by two Councilmembers, Charles and Zahra, and has been a topic of consideration for some time. Following this discussion, the Council will have four options to consider:

• Request staff to bring back a Resolution to consider placing general-purpose Transactions and Use tax on the November Ballot.
• Or do the same for a special purpose tax
• Or receive and file (e.g., do nothing)
• Or do something else

So essentially there are two main options – tax or no tax — and depending on the choice, two further options, a general purpose tax or a special purpose tax.

There are several important differences between a general purpose resolution and a special purpose resolution, both substantive and procedural. First, as the context suggests a special purpose sales tax must be used for a specified purpose, in our case I would guess that would be streets and roads, while a general purpose tax goes into the general fund.

Second,  a general-purpose sales tax requires a 2/3 vote of the Council to be put on the ballot. For Fullerton, that would be four votes. But it only requires a 50% plus one vote of the electorate to pass. Conversely, a special purpose tax only requires a majority vote of the Council to go on the ballot. But it requires a 2/3 vote of the electorate to pass.

Special purpose taxes are usually approved by the electorate, while general purpose taxes are not.

The City currently has a 7.75% sales tax, most of which goes to the state. The City gets only about $.13 of every dollar collected, which comes to about $32 Million. Revenues from a new Transaction and Sales tax would all go to the City. If that were a 1% increase, it would come to about $30 million

This is a bit complex, and my description is not complete. If you want to be sure you understand it (and that I got it right), you can find it here: https://fullerton.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx

For more information, you can find it here: https://fullerton.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx

Additionally, the Fourth of July celebrations include a car show from 10 AM to 2 PM, activities on the plaza throughout the day, and a fireworks show at 9:00 PM, likely from the roof of the parking structure on Wilshire. There is also a bicycle ride along Wilshire (mostly) starting at Jefferson at 11 AM. Expect a large turnout for the event.

Below is the schedule as currently printed  in the Observer on-line:

• – Car Show: 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
• – Community Bicycle Ride 11:00 AM on Jefferson and Wilshire Ave. Ride to the downtown plaza [perhaps to Cornell and back]
• – 4th of July Festival: 2:00 PM – 9:00 PM
• – Free Concert featuring the Scotty Mac Band
• – Carnival Rides, Games, and Food Booths
• – Firework Show: 9:00 PM