Sirs and Madam,

I was quite surprised to hear Council Member Cline last night refer to traffic patrols and stop light cameras as revenue enhancement mechanisms that Menlo Park should pursue in order to retire the UUT. I guess I was naïve in believing that our police patrolled our streets to keep them safe, rather than to shake down our residents so that our leaders can pad their resumes.

I agree with the sentiments expressed by many Council Members last night that the City needs to find ways to increase revenues, but those revenue increases must be efficient and honest. The UUT, while a tax, is broad-based and relatively efficient. The bulk of the money collected from our residents actually goes to providing services. Money collected via exaggerated fines is highly inefficient and uneven. Collection can require court appearances by both the officer and the cited. It can raise insurance rates for the cited driver for years. I would be surprised if such a "revenue enhancement" returned to the city more than 10% of the costs imposed on the cited drivers. We should not be seeking to "reduce taxes" by replacing them with a revenue mechanism that costs our residents ten times as much to achieve the same net result.

As useful as the analogy may be, Menlo Park is not a business, it is a city, and the government is supposed to represent the interests of its residents, not treat them as prey.

Sincerely,

Robert English
4 East Creek Pl
Menlo Park, CA Received on Wed Jun 4 11:39:46 2008