EL SEGUNDO HERALD March 17, 2016 Page 5 Election 2016 Herald’s Candidate Q & A Carol Pirsztuk Don Brann Drew Boyles Marie Fellhauer Dave Atkinson We do not edit or correct the candidates answers. All answers are limited to 100 words. Good luck to our candidates. #1 What is your stance on the Measure B proposed TOT increase? Should the City consider any other tax increases or new fees? Carol Pirsztuk: By increasing the TOT from 8% to 12%, El Segundo will receive the funds necessary to balance the current city budget, which is forecasted to be at a deficit of over $1 million. With the increased TOT, hotels in El Segundo will continue to be able to retain their competitive edge compared to hotels in the City of Los Angeles, who currently have a TOT of 14%. Before considering and any future taxes and fees, it would be prudent for the city to perform a detailed cost-benefit analysis of existing taxes and fees to determine their viability. Don Brann: I support the increase in the TOT rate. It’s time to establish a competitive rate, market sensitive to the region. At 12%, El Segundo hotels will generate millions of dollars annually, dependent on the number of rooms occupied, that can be used to improve City infrastructure or increase services to residents. Tourists, business travelers and visitors will pay this tax, not residents. Industrial and commercial development is flourishing in the City’s non-residential sector providing revenue growth and supporting a balanced budget. There is no need for other new taxes or fees. Drew Boyles: While I am generally not in favor of increased taxation, I support the proposed increase in TOT. The TOT tax is a common hotel tax that is paid upon checking out of hotels. El Segundo currently collects 8% of the hotel room rate. Our strongest competition for business travelers is the LAX area, posting 15.5%. The surrounding cities, on average, are collecting 12.9%. The Economic Development Advisory Council (EDAC), which I chair, discussed and analyzed this issue at length within our council, and we believe this proposal is in the best interest of the business community and the city. Marie Fellhauer: Measure B is a 4% increase to the transient occupancy tax (TOT). El Segundo is currently at 8% and the average for the region is over 12%. Additionally, our main competitor for hotels is the Century corridor where the TOT is over 15%. In general I’m not a big proponent of taxes. However, local taxes where every penny remains in our city are different because government should be local. This increase will not cost our residents or hotels anything while bringing much needed money to the General Fund. I fully support and urge voters to vote “yes” on Measure B. Dave Atkinson: Measure B is a Transient Occupancy Tax. This Measure is to be collected from hotels, motels, and lodges from their guests sent only to El Segundo. These funds will be used for city needs, such as aging buildings, Rec & Parks facilities, street repair, sewer repair, education, fire & safety, economic development, and more. This is at no cost to the residents of our great city. This 4% increase still leaves El Segundo below the area average of 12.9%. The expenses in our city continue to rise and this is a great resource to combat them. #2 What are some creative ways to generate revenue for the City other than taxes? Carol Pirsztuk: The City has an opportunity to increase revenues by automating the payment process for city fees and licenses. From obtaining a business license to the use of our parks, if the city were to provide an online payment option, the process would become streamlined and less cumbersome. Resulting in increased compliance and, in turn, a decreased need for collections. Additionally, by hiring the new Economic Development Manager, the city should be able to expand their efforts on enticing new businesses to El Segundo that compliment our community Don Brann: mpacting the revenue side of the budget avoids the need to reduce expenditures. Thus, the identification of Burkley & Brandlin LLP A T T O R N E Y S A T L A W Living Trusts/Wills, Probate, Employment Law, Personal Injury Trust and Estates Litigation, Business Litigation, Civil Litiga tion 310-540-6000 Lifetime El Segundo Residents *AV Rated (Highest) Martindale - Hubbell / **Certified Specialist Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law, State Bar of California, Board of Legal Specialization Brian R. Brandlin • Bruce R. Brandlin • Christopher P. Brandlin Douglass M O R T U A R Y “Our Family Serving Yours Since 1954” B U R I A L - C R E M A T I O N - W O R L D W I D E T R A N S F E R P E T M E M O R I A L P R O D U C T S 500 EAST IMPERIAL AVENUE EL SEGUNDO, CALIFORNIA 90245 Telephone (310) 640-9325 • Fax (310) 640-0778 • FD658 new income streams enables the budget to be balanced without disrupting current programs and services. This is a preferable solution, much more positive than slashing costs and I have employed it throughout my career to balance public agency budgets. The stimulation of new business development (Raytheon) results in new revenue. The Rams return to the region will increase the value of the higher room tax. Re-purposing existing buildings will enable more smart growth and revenue. Drew Boyles: With more than $50 million of our town’s annual revenues coming from business and related activity, we must invest in economic development in order to keep that revenue source thriving. All organizations, including cities, must spend money on brand awareness, marketing and public relations to remain relevant. We have had success in EDAC partnering with businesses on cooperative advertising buys: we can do this as a City, and should also consider other partnerships, such as allowing commerce to sponsor some public properties, such as athletic fields. Overhauling our city’s business license process and fee structure is also overdue. Marie Fellhauer: There are various ways to generate revenue for the city other than adding taxes. For instance, we can have naming rights at sports facilities to offset some of our park expenses. Additionally, parking lots/structures can have naming rights where the lot is referred to as the name of a large donor. I would love to see additional artistic elements infused into our city to attract foot traffic, which will support local businesses in our downtown area. Sustainability projects often have grant funding available, such as harnessing power in a creative and artistic way to offset the city’s cost of energy. Dave Atkinson: Taxes have always been the go to method to raise money for municipal entities. There are no popular ways to generate revenue to our city since they will always have a cost. One way would be for the permit and licensing procedure to become faster and easier resulting in increased requests and revenue. The not so popular ways would include reducing trash pick-up and street cleaning to bi-monthly, and reduce subsidizing our water supply. Reductions in Rec & Parks activities and increased fees for non-El Segundo residents that use our facilities are options without tax increases. #3 Was there an example you saw of wasteful spending in the City and if so, how would you remedy the problem? Carol Pirsztuk: Process inefficiency and the lack of automation results in wasteful spending. Currently, the city is without an IT manager, which is delaying the implementation of new finance and planning systems and a much-needed overhaul of the city’s website to include fee automation. With a lack of system sophistication, the city’s employees are not being optimized, and the residents are forced to incur project delays and a lack of workflow tractability. This issue could be resolved with a focused effort on hiring the appropriate staff, and the prevention of IT budgeted monies being diverted to fund other initiatives. Don Brann: The City’s budget challenges are caused more by missed opportunities, a failure to take prudent risks, than by a pattern of wasteful spending habits. The majority of the Council’s expenditures are for personnel costs: salaries, benefits and pensions. In 2008, at the beginning of the Great Recession, the Council negotiated double digit salary increases to employees driving up pension costs. When expenditures are over-estimated and revenues are conservatively stated in the Budget, it appears to be running at a deficit when, in reality, it is not unbalanced and this is revealed in the closing of the fiscal year Drew Boyles: I have witnessed several capital investment decisions that resulted in significant resident outcry and, consequently, wasted municipal funds. For example, Main Street was redesigned many years ago and was later restored to nearly its original design. The See Candidate Q & A, page 18 The Jewelry Source 337 Main St. El Segundo. 310-322-7110 www.jewelrysourceUSA.com ©2007
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