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Municipal Revenue & Taxation <br />1-UStateBudgetStability <br />Metro Cities strongly supports a state revenue system that provides for stability, flexibility <br />and adequacy in the system, reduces the volatility of state revenues and improves the long- <br />term balance of state revenues and expenditures. Metro Cities supports a statutory budget <br />reserve minimum that is adequate to manage risks and fluctuations in the stateÓs tax <br />system and a cash flow reserve account of sufficient size so that the state can avoid short- <br />termborrowingtomanagecashflowfluctuations. <br />Metro Cities also supports an examination of the property tax system and the relationships <br />between state and local tax bases, with an emphasis on state budget cuts and effects on <br />property taxes. State budget deficitsmust be balanced withstatewidesourcesandmust not <br />further reduce funding for property tax relief programs and aids to local governments that result <br />in local governmentsbearingmoreresponsibility forthe costsofservicesthat belong tothestate. <br />1-VTaxationofElectronicCommerce <br />Metro Citiessupportseffortstodevelopastreamlined salesandusetaxsystemtosimplify <br />sales and use tax collection and administration by retailers and states. Metro Cities <br />supports policies that encourage remote retailers to collect and remit state sales taxes in <br />statesthatare complyingwiththe StreamlinedSalesandUse TaxAgreement. <br />Metro Cities opposes legislation that allows accommodation intermediaries such as online <br />travel companies a tax exemption that terminates obligations to pay hotel taxes tostate and <br />local governments,or otherwise restrictslegalactionsbystatesandlocalities.The <br />Legislaturein2011clarifiedthat these servicesaresubject tostate salestax.MetroCities <br />su pportsstatutorychangestofurtherclarifythatalllodgingtaxes, whetheradministered by the <br />state or locally, apply to total charges, including charges for services provided byaccommodation <br />intermediaries. <br />1-WPaymentsforServicestoTaxExemptProperty <br />Metro Cities supports city authority to collect payments from tax exempt property owners <br />to cover the costs of services to those entities, similar to statutory authority for special <br />assessments. Metro Cities opposes legislation that would exempt nonprofit entities from <br />payinguserfees andservicecharges. <br />1-XProceedsfromTaxForfeitedProperty <br />Metro Cities supports changes to state laws governing the proceeds for tax forfeited <br />properties. Currently, counties can recover administrative costs related to a property before <br />other allocations are madeand the law allows for the county to recoup a percentage of <br />assessment costs once administrative costs are allocated. The result is often no allocation or a <br />very low allocation, and usually insufficient level of proceeds available for covering special <br />assessments, unpaid taxes and fees to cities. State processes addressing tax-forfeited properties <br />2022 Legislative Policies <br />9 <br /> <br />