Time to reduce expenses, not increase taxes and fees
It is time for San Diego Mayor Gloria and the City Council to look inward at the city’s spending problems. Its botched effort at levying trash fees (why not get three bids from qualified vendors and outsource the service to the professionals?) has caused citizens to lose even more trust in the city’s ability to govern.
The list of such ineptitude is long. Because of such incompetence, the city’s finances are a disaster and unsustainable, which will ultimately lead to bankruptcy without prompt action.
Now we read the City Council is considering levying a $5,000-per-bedroom tax on owners of second homes who do not rent them out long-term. Taxing private investors on homeownership will serve two purposes: 1) ignite lawsuits and 2) distort markets.
Lawsuits cost time and money. Distorting efficient markets brings unintended consequences, which tend to exacerbate problems, not solve them (see the L.A. “mansion” tax results). This idea will not solve a housing affordability problem that has developed over many years of poor city and state development policy.
The city now also wants to raise fees on restaurants and hotels using valet parking spaces and/or outside dining spaces. Levying these “taxes” will drive more out of business and reduce city revenue. The restaurant and hotel businesses have already been slammed by $20-per-hour minimum wages and high inflation caused by poor government policy. They do not need more cost burdens.
The city must do the hard job of eliminating redundant personnel and departments. There are approximately 12,000 city employees serving nearly 1.4 million citizens, or about one city employee per 115 people. The average for U.S. cities of more than 500,000 people is one employee per 322 people, according to Google.
Our City Council and mayor need a class in Economics 101 and fiscal discipline to make hard decisions at City Hall. Instead, our leaders look to pick the pockets of hard-working citizens.
It is a sign of failure to govern. We need new leadership badly.
Ted Levis
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