Utility tax should be decided in November’s election





Calabasas voters will decide either in November or March of next spring the fate of the city’s 5 percent utility tax. A recent petition drive has succeeded, and now the people must decide whether they will continue paying a surcharge of 5 percent on gas, electricity and telephones—or whether they want to repeal the utility user tax.


Councilmembers must now enable the will of the people. The only question is when.


We hope the councilmembers will approve the measure for November’s ballot because there’s no valid reason for delaying it until March.


Or is there?


Some of our local cities have set their election cycles in off years, or in the case of Calabasas, in March.


The least number of voters will show up at polling places in off-year elections, which maximizes the impact of the voters who do exercise their right to vote.


It puts more power into the hands of fewer people.


If you have municipal elections that are combined with presidential, gubernatorial or congressional races, you get more turnout.


When it comes to elections, we like high voter turnout; the more the merrier. If more people vote, the outcome is less likely to be skewed than when fewer people vote.


We hope Calabasas councilmembers put the utility tax on November’s ballot instead of waiting until March.



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