San Francisco’s Fiscal StraitjacketPaul Hogarthbyline‚ Jan. 28‚ 2009The Board of Supervisors voted 8-3 last night to pass an emergency ordinance – laying the groundwork for a June special election to raise revenue. San Francisco faces a $576 million deficit for the next fiscal year, which will mean dramatic cuts if the City fails to get new revenue by June 30th. We can spend ages debating what got us into this mess, but the real story here is that right-wing state laws make San Francisco virtually powerless to get out of this hole. It’s not because the City Charter mandates a balanced budget. It’s that Prop 13 and Prop 218 require local taxes to get voter approval. So when San Francisco gets in such a fiscal crisis, we are reduced to placing revenue measures on the ballot – and hope that a super-majority of the electorate will vote to raise taxes. Rather than dally with celebrities in France and Switzerland, Mayor Gavin Newsom should be coming home to make the June election a success. And as he runs for statewide office, Newsom should use this opportunity to tout structural budget reform to give cities more flexibility. |