879 / 80.6% Yes votes ...... 211 / 19.4% No votes

See Also: Index of all Measures

Meaning of Voting Yes/No

A YES vote of this measure means:

A two-thirds "yes" vote on this measure would authorize Montara Sanitary District to issue bonds in an amount not to exceed $19 million, for the specified purposes of acquisition of and improvement to the domestic water system.

A NO vote of this measure means:

A "no" vote would prevent Montara Sanitary District from issuing bonds of up to $19 million.

This measure would authorize the Montara Sanitary District to issue bonds in an amount not to exceed $19 million. The bonds will have an interest rate not to exceed 12% per annum, or the legal maximum at the time of the sale of the bonds, and shall mature in no more than 40 years. The Board of Directors has listed the specified purposes of the bonds to be: acquisition of and improvement to the domestic water system servicing the District, including filtration and related improvements to the Districts treatment facilities; construction of new water supply lines and all auxiliary work and incidental costs.

A "yes" vote on this measure would authorize Montara Sanitary District to issue bonds in an amount not to exceed $19 million, for the specified purposes of acquisition of and improvement to the domestic water system servicing the District, including filtration and related improvements to the Districts treatment facilities; construction of new water supply lines and all auxiliary work and incidental costs.

A "no" vote would prevent Montara Sanitary District from issuing bonds of up to $19 million.

This measure passes if two-thirds (2/3) of those voting on the measure vote "yes."

It's an "own" or "rent" decision. A "YES" vote on Measure V gives us the opportunity to buy our water system rather than continuing to "rent" it.

Voting "YES" represents the cheapest way to fix our water system and the only way to have local control.

This measure provides a "line of credit" to issue bonds in increments, as needed, to buy and rehabilitate the system. Taxes will go up incrementally, and only as needed, and as decided by your locally elected board.

A public agency concerns itself with the community's needs, corporations work for profits. For example, we need more storage tanks for community-wide fire protection. Meeting this need serves the community, but not necessarily the corporate bottom line.

It costs less to use income-tax-deductible bonds to buy and fix the system.

How? The 45% of your water bill now siphoned off as corporate profits and corporate taxes could instead be used to make repairs and reduce rates. In other words, it's cheaper to buy than to rent.

Adequate and reliable water supplies maintain property values and reduce fire insurance costs. Over 90% of Montara and Moss Beach voters overwhelmingly approved water powers for Montara Sanitary District, allowing MSD to work to acquire the water system in the public interest. Our community needs your support again.

Let's stop pouring our money down the drain.

Please vote YES on Measure V.

See http://water.montara.com for more information.

/s/ Richard S. Gordon
San Mateo County Supervisor-District 3

/s/ Gary Warhaftig
Montara/Moss Beach Water Improvement Association

/s/ April Vargas
Midcoast Community Council Member

/s/ Lou Wall
Former Member, Montara Sanitary District Board

/s/ Jim Harvey
Concerned Montara Citizen

An election will be held in the Montara Sanitary District on November 6, 2001 to authorize the sale of up to $19,000,000 in general obligation bonds of the District to finance the acquisition and improvements of a domestic water supply, treatment, storage, distribution and fire protection system serving the entire area of the Montara Sanitary District including all auxiliary work and costs incidental thereto. It is expected that bonds will be issued in series over time, but it is possible that all the bonds will be issued at one time. If such bonds are authorized and sold, the debt service on the bond issue (for all series combined including both principal and interest) will be funded by proceeds of taxes levied upon taxable property in the District.

The following information regarding tax rates is given to comply with Sections 9400-9404 of the California Elections Code. Such information represents the District's best estimates and is based upon actual assessed valuations available at the time of this election. These estimates assume the entire bond debt service will be repaid from property tax revenues.

1. The best estimate of the tax which would be required to be levied to fund this bond issue during the first fiscal year after the sale of first series of the bonds, based on estimated assessed valuations available at the time of filing of this statement is 24.4 cents per $100 of assessed valuation (or, stated another way, $244.00 per $100,000 of assessed valuation) in the fiscal year 2003/04.

2. The best estimate of the tax rate that will be required to be levied to fund the bond issue during the first fiscal year after the sale of the last series of bonds and an estimate of the year in which that rate will apply is 24.4 cents per $100 of assessed valuation (or, stated another way, $244.00 per $100,000 of assessed valuation) in the fiscal year 2013/14.

3. The best estimate of the highest tax rate that will be required to be levied to fund all series of the bond issue, based on estimated assessed valuations available at the time of filing of this statement, is 24.4 cents per $100 of assessed valuation (or, stated another way, $244.00 per $100,000 of assessed valuation) in the fiscal year 2013/2014.

Attention to all voters is directed to the fact that the foregoing information is based upon the District's best estimates from official sources and upon certain projections and estimates. These estimates are not binding upon the District. Variations in the time of bond sales, the amount of bonds sold at each bond sale, the structure of repayment of each series of bonds, future assessed valuations, and market interest rates at the time of each sale will affect these estimates. The actual date of the sales of said bonds, the amount sold on any given date, and the structure of repayment will be governed by the needs of the District and other factors (including tax rate impact). The actual interest rates at which the bonds will be sold, which in any event will not exceed the maximum permitted by law, will depend upon the market for the bonds at the time of each sale. Actual assessed valuations in future years will depend upon the value of property within the District as determined in the assessment and the equalization process. Hence, the actual tax rates and the years in which such rates are applicable may vary from those presently estimated above. Under State law, the District must levy a tax each year sufficient to pay principal and interest on all outstanding bonds, so if the assessed value in the District subsequently were to decline, the required tax rate in years subsequent to bond issuance could increase. Correspondingly, if assessed values increase, the bond tax rate could decrease.

Voters should note that estimated tax rate is based on the assessed value of taxable property on the County's tax rolls, not on the property's market value, which could be more or less than the assessed value. In addition, for taxpayers eligible for a property tax exemption, such as the homeowner's exemption, the assessed valuation upon which tax is calculated will be reduced. Certain taxpayers may also be eligible to postpone payment of taxes. Property owners should consult their own property tax bills and tax advisors to determine their property's assessed value and any applicable tax exemptions.