League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
	Sonoma County, CA November 4, 2008 Election
	Measure P Bond Sonoma Valley Health Care District 2/3 Approval Required Pass: 14,858 / 80.8% Yes votes ...... 3,531 / 19.2% No votes See Also: Index of all Measures

Arguments For Measure P

If you agree our community needs a local emergency room, we urge you to vote yes on Measure P. Measure P will preserve our local emergency room by updating Sonoma Valley Hospital's outdated buildings and equipment. Measure P will save money by using the hospital's existing site and facilities. For 75% of homeowners, the bonds will cost less than $1.50 per week. Sonoma Valley Hospital's emergency room serves anyone in need, regardless of their health insurance coverage. Its emergency room has nearly 10,000 patient visits annually. Over half our community's residents will use the emergency room during the next five years. If our community lost its emergency room, lives would likely be lost during emergencies due to significant increases in response and travel times. State law requires an emergency room be part of a hospital. To continue providing services, Sonoma Valley Health Care District must upgrade its buildings and equipment. Measure P will pay for necessary earthquake safety improvements, new medical equipment, a new central utility plant, new utility systems and equipment, and new information systems and equipment. This will allow the hospital to continue providing services for at least another 20 years. Measure P will also pay to refinance debt from prior earthquake safety upgrades--reducing expenses and saving money. Measure P provides for accountability to the taxpayers. It directs the Sonoma Valley Health Care District board to establish a citizen's oversight committee to ensure bond funds are used only for authorized projects. Measure P will make the Sonoma Valley more attractive for doctors' to work, enabling the community to keep the doctors we have and to recruit new ones. Measure P has been unanimously endorsed by the Board of Directors of the Sonoma County Taxpayers Association. Vote Yes on Measure P to ensure our community continues to have high quality health care and life saving emergency care. s/ Ignazio A. Vella s/ Mitchel M. Mulas s/ Sylvia J. Ayers-Crawford s/ Pamela M. Gibson s/ Horacio Villasenor (No arguments against Measure P were submitted)

Tax Rate Statement

An election will be held in the Sonoma Valley Health Care District (the "District") on November 4, 2008, to authorize the sale of not to exceed $35,000,000 in bonds of the District to finance and refinance hospital facilities as described in the ballot measure. If the bonds are approved, the District expects to sell the bonds in one series (but may issue the bonds in more than one series). Principal and interest on the bonds will be payable from the proceeds of tax levies made upon the taxable property in the District. The following information is provided in compliance with sections 9400-9404 of the California Elections Code: 1. The best estimate of the tax rate that would be required to be levied to fund this bond issue during the first fiscal year after the sale of the bonds, based on estimated assessed valuations available at the time of filing this statement, is $13.96 per $100,000 of assessed valuation in fiscal year 2009-10. 2. The District's best estimate of the average tax rate that would be required to be levied to fund this bond issue, based on estimated assessed valuations available at the time of filing this statement, is $13.69 per $100,000 of assessed valuation. 3. The best estimate of the highest tax rate that would be required to be levied to fund this bond issue, based on estimated assessed valuations available at the time of filing this statement, is $13.96 per $100,000 of assessed valuation in fiscal year 2009-10, decreasing each year thereafter. Voters should note that the estimated tax rates are based on the assessed value of taxable property on the Sonoma County official tax rolls, not on the market value of property. Property owners should consult their own property tax bills to determine their property's assessed value and any applicable tax exemptions. Attention of all voters is directed to the fact that the foregoing information is based on the District's projections and estimates only, which are not binding upon the District. The actual tax rates and the years in which they will apply may vary from those presently estimated, due to variations from these estimates in the timing of the sale of the bonds, the amount of bonds sold and market interest rates at the time of the sale, and actual assessed valuations over the term of repayment of the bonds. The date of sale and the amount of bonds sold at any given time will be determined by the District based on the need for construction funds and other factors, including the legal limitations approved by a 2/3 vote. The actual interest rates at which the bonds will be sold will depend on the bond market at the time of each bond sale, among other factors. Actual future assessed valuation will depend on the amount and value of taxable property within the District as determined by the Sonoma County Assessor in the annual assessment and the equalization process. s/ Richard F. H. Kirk, M.D. Chair, Board of Directors, Sonoma Valley Health Care District

Full Text of Measure P

To preserve essential emergency services by upgrading existing outdated buildings and equipment, meet state-mandated earthquake safety standards, upgrade energy, electrical, surgical and information technology systems, rebuild the hospital's central utility plant, and refinance debt incurred to retrofit the west wing of the main hospital building, shall the Sonoma Valley Health Care District issue $35 million in bonds, none of which will pay staff salaries, with expenditures to be monitored by an independent citizens' oversight committee? Purpose of the Bonds. Facility improvements resulting from this bond will preserve or enhance the quality of healthcare available to the residents of the Sonoma Valley Health Care District and patients requiring medical care in the region. Proceeds from this bond may be used to upgrade, improve, equip and renovate the existing health facilities of the District, and to provide for retirement of up to $4 million of existing debt incurred to retrofit the west wing of the main hospital building. Special Bond Account and Mandatory Annual Audits. A separate account shall be established for deposit of proceeds of the sale of the Bonds. This account shall be audited annually and a report shall be made detailing (1) the amount of Bond proceeds received and expended in such fiscal year and (2) the status of any projects funded or to be funded from the proceeds of Bonds authorized to be issued by this measure. No Money for Salaries. Proceeds from the sale of the Bonds authorized by this proposition shall be used only for costs incurred in connection with funding of the Project and the cost of the issuance of the Bonds, and not for any other purpose, including staff and administrator salaries and other operating expenses. Independent Citizens' Oversight Committee. The Board shall establish an independent citizens' oversight committee to ensure Bond proceeds are expended only for the Projects authorized by the ballot measure. The committee shall be established within 90 days after the election.