ABC, mortgage / real estate doens't generate sales tax
I didn't realize that businesses weren't a major source of revenue for cities so that got me to wondering where does Irvine get most of its money?
I found their
annual report online and thought it was pretty interesting:
ECONOMIC CONDITION
The Southern California economy continues to show signs of strengthening, with Irvine experiencing growth in its key revenue sectors of sales and property taxes. In contrast to the State’s recent fiscal troubles, the City of Irvine continues to be in a strong financial position due to prudent management of its resources.
Overall, the City’s general fund revenue and transfers for Fiscal Year 2005-06 increased 63% over Fiscal Year 2004-05, as did the related expenditures. The revenue and expenditure growth, shown in the adjacent graph, largely resulted from developer payments (totaling $66.7 million in revenue) pursuant to the Orange County Great Park Development Agreement, and related transfers to a special fund for use by the Great Park Corporation to develop the public amenities at the Great Park.
The elevated trend for revenues and expenditures (including amounts above for the Great Park) will continue in Fiscal Year 2006-07 due to another $66.7 million developer payment.
The largest component of the City’s general fund, sales tax, is projected to increase by 12.8% over prior year actual amounts to reflect anticipated levels of local business and consumer spending, particularly in the transportation and retail sectors. Irvine continued to experience a rise in property tax revenues, even though Proposition 13 restricts increases to property tax assessments. This growth was attributed primarily to new development and resale activity. With $33.8 billion of assessable property in fiscal year 2005-06, and the Orange County Assessor’s estimate of $39.2 billion in 2006-07, Irvine remains the number one city in assessed valuation in Orange County. This 15.9% growth in assessed value from the prior year is reflective of the ongoing expansion of the residential market in the City, as well as commercial property transactions.