May 14, 2003

Dear (Insert Name of Committee Member)

On behalf of the Sunnyvale City Council, I am pleased to inform you that you have been selected to serve on the Ad Hoc Advisory Committee to consider increasing existing and/or establishing new local taxes. As you may know, the City is faced with a very serious budget crisis. The Council has taken the initial steps to reduce City spending in order to close a projected $15 million gap between revenues and expenses in the City's General Fund. We now must turn our attention toward looking at ways to increase the revenues that the City uses to provide services to residents, businesses, and community groups.

Your involvement on this ad hoc committee will be critical in helping us to resolve our budget crisis. In establishing the committee, the City Council developed a three-part assignment:

  1. Examine further the potential for increasing existing local taxes and/or establishing new local taxes.
  2. Recommend a package of increases to existing taxes and/or the establishment of new taxes for consideration by the City Council.
  3. Develop a recommended public information campaign that can be used to inform and educate Sunnyvale residents about any proposed increases to existing taxes and/or new local taxes that the City Council decides to take to the voters.

These tasks are defined in more detail in the attachments to this letter.

The committee will be working on a very tight timetable. If Council decides to seek voter approval for increasing an existing or establishing a new general tax, a resolution needs to be adopted and presented to the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors by August 8, 2003. We need to consider the committee's recommendation(s) no later than July 15, 2003 in order to meet this timetable. Staff from the Office of the City Manager and the Finance Department will assist the committee in completing its assignments.

Again, I want to thank you for your willingness to serve on this committee. We recognize the time and commitment that it will require. I am confident that your efforts and the committee’s contribution will play a significant role in helping the City to resolve this critical, unprecedented budget crisis.

I look forward to working with you on this important assignment.

Sincerely,

Julia E. Miller
Mayor

Attachment: RTC #03-173