Title
Municipal Service District Property Owner Engagement Policy
Action
Action:
Adopt the Municipal Service District Property Owner Engagement Policy
Body
Committee Chair:
Greg Phipps, Budget and Effectiveness
Staff Resource(s):
Sabrina Joy-Hogg, City Manager’s Office
Phil Reiger, Strategy and Budget
Explanation
§ During the Fiscal Year 2020 budget approval process, Municipal Service District (MSD) contractors, Charlotte Center City Partners (CCCP) and University City Partners (UCP) requested to increase MSD property tax rates.
§ City Council asked the MSD contractors to conduct an ad-hoc survey of property owners in the MSD districts to better understand public sentiment on the proposed increases.
§ To address the issue for future consideration, the Budget and Effectiveness Committee (Committee) was charged with providing policy guidance on developing a formal process for property owner engagement when considering a requested MSD tax increase.
§ Peer city comparisons were conducted to evaluate property owner engagement best practices.
§ The proposed policy has been developed in collaboration with and agreement of both CCCP and UCP.
§ The property owner engagement process in the proposed policy requires the following:
- All requests to increase MSD taxes submitted in writing,
- Notice of opportunities for feedback provided to all property owners and tenants within the district(s), and
- Results of the engagement process provided to City Council as a part of the budget process to inform decisions on a requested MSD tax increase.
§ The policy also ensures that MSD tax rate requests are completed in a timeframe consistent with the budget development timeline.
Committee Discussion
§ In June 2019, the Committee received a referral to provide guidance on policy that ensures property owner and tenant engagement regarding MSD tax rate increase requests.
§ On June 24 and July 22, 2019, the Committee reviewed the legal framework, history of existing MSDs, peer city research data, and collaborative input from CCCP and UCP.
§ On September 17, 2019, the Committee reviewed the draft policy and voted unanimously (all committee members present) to recommend the policy to full Council.
Attachments
Attachment(s)
Municipal Service District Property Owner Engagement Policy