There are a few significant items on the next council agenda that we will be discussing:
- The designation of a voting delegate to the League of California Cities Annual Conference. There are two resolutions that are being presented at the upcoming September meeting. The first is a resolution to urge the legislature to distribute sales tax receipts for online retailers in a different way. Currently distribution appears to be weighted towards locations that have fulfillment centers and the League resolution would ask the legislature to distribute sales taxes currently attributable to those locations to a broader swatch of cities in CA. The second resolution urges the legislature and governor to provide regulatory authority and funding to assist cities to address illegal dumping, graffiti, and homeless encampments along rail lines in the state.
- The adoption of a general fund reserve policy. The proposal in the agenda packet contemplates a Catastrophic Reserve equal to 50% of operating expenditures, Budget Stabilization Reserve equal to 5% of operating expenditures, and the remainder being undesignated fund balance.
- A presentation and discussion about potential uses of the American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds that the city is slated to receive. Clayton expects to receive approximately $2.9M through ARP. This will be distributed in two stages, of which we've already received the first. The next stage will be received in or around July 2022 and must be encumbered by the end of 2024. Unspent funds must be returned to the federal government. There are a number of specified categories that are eligible to use the funding. I encourage community input on how we should direct these dollars.
If you have any thoughts of questions about the items above, please let me know.
