At the May 11, 2020 Budget and Finance committee Zoom meeting, we requested that the City exhaust all available revenue sources before accessing the City Reserve Funds as per requirements outlined in the 2018 City Resolution 68332.
We feel it is the City’s duty to correct the multitude of underassessed tax records before resorting to use of Emergency Funds. We presented the two following examples, which are homes for sale, and are in need of correction since building expansions through the years have not been taxed as required by law. (BMC 7.56.030, 7.81.100 and others). A sample little Berkeley home is charged for non-conforming space, so pays more assessments that the first two much larger, remodeled homes!! The two City ordinances above require tax to be levied on the dwelling unit, not the dwelling and non-conforming spaces. To confound sensibility even further, a house across the street from the little sample home has a cavernous non-conforming space that is not charged!
| 2319 California, | ’97 permit 2nd story, Realtor says 2199 w/ADU | public record 1626 ft2 | 1137 ft2 charged by City | $8700 revenue loss last 10 yrs |
| 2931 Piedmont | Realtor says 3323 ft2 | public record 2524 ft2 | 1589 ft2 charged by City | $14204 revenue loss last 10 yrs |
| Sample Berkeley home | public record 1097 ft2 | 1988 ft2 charged by City | $7928 taken from family |
2319 California
2931 Piedmont
Sample uncharged non-conforming space….why is this non-conforming space untaxed, while the sample little house – not shown to protect family privacy, is charged for non-conforming space?
The City auditor presented the following goal to the committee, “ensure social equity by evaluating the need to support Berkeley residents comprehensively rather than on a one at a time basis…” Addressing the anticipated exigent needs of the City’s finances requires a well-managed and comprehensive overhaul of the tax assessment system, not a hasty one time dip into the City’s reserves. This will accomplish two goals:
Ensure social equity as the will of the voters will be restored
Obviate or lessen the need to dip into the City’s Reserves.