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Interesting, just last August, 2015 Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton conned the voters into passing Prop 104 which is a 35 year, $31 billion sales tax.
Mayor Stanton lied and claimed the tax was for mass transit but in reality the fine print in the tax said the $31 billion slush fund said the mayor and city council can use it for any damn thing they want to spend it on. Now according to this article the city of Phoenix still doesn't have enough money and they tyrants on the Phoenix City Council want to shake down property owners for a $51 a year tax increase. Time to throw these crooks on the Phoenix City Council out of office: Greg Stanton, Mayor Phoenix to vote on budget with property-tax increase Dustin Gardiner, The Republic | azcentral.com 8:07 p.m. MST May 16, 2016 Typical Phoenix homeowners could see their city property-tax bills increase by about $51 a year if the City Council votes Tuesday to support the tax hike as part of the city's budget for next year. City Manager Ed Zuercher wants the increase so the city can afford to make its debt payments without draining a $60 million surplus or cutting services. The proposal is part of what city officials have called the most complicated set of fiscal hurdles in years. Phoenix has a surplus this year, and revenue for its operating budget is at a record high. But city officials say a property-tax rate increase, which would be the city's first since 1995, is needed because a reserve fund that's been used to pay debt on bond projects is almost depleted. The city kept the property-tax rate flat after the housing-market crash by using that reserve fund to help pay debt, even as tax revenues plummeted. Now, that money is almost gone, and Zuercher said the city needs to raise taxes or face a choice: not spend its surplus on other things, or cut services. The increase would raise property-tax revenues by about $37 million. At the same time, Zuercher's proposed $1.22 billion operating budget also increases spending. He wants the city to restore pay and benefits for thousands of city workers who have taken cuts the past six years. His budget also would increase spending to pay for police body cameras and other programs. Council members will vote on the budget at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday during a meeting in their chambers, 200 W. Jefferson St. The vote is one of several needed to finalize a budget for the fiscal year that starts July 1, but the others likely will be formalities. Some residents and council members have criticized the spending plan. They say the city shouldn't increase taxes and spend more when it has a surplus and revenues are at an all-time high, surpassing prerecession levels. In addition, the council will vote on new labor contracts for the five unions that represent most city workers, from police officers to garbage-truck drivers. The contracts would restore pay and benefits over the next three years. Most of the city's $60 million surplus would go to the pay and benefit restoration, while $5.4 million would start the five-year process of equipping every patrol officer in the Phoenix Police Department with a body-worn camera. |