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Mello-Roos: The Tax You Choose N ineteen years ago before the big boom hit, Beaumont once again took a pioneering approach to building public improvements. Smooth roadways, a high-tech new sewer plant and miles of freshly built water lines were planned, and in many cases, built before homeowners and businesses came to town. It was reminiscent of our hearty forefathers who shaped our destiny more than 100 years ago. They subdivided the town, sank wells, brought water down from Edgar Canyon and laid out streets before the tourists and investors arrived to buy land. By the time our hometown boomed in 2000, like the pioneering days of old, many needed improvements had already been built. New residents and builders alike found a ready-made community — a place where dreams come true. The Birth of Mello Roos The creation of Prop 13 in 1978 created a challenge when it came to developing new neighborhoods. The cost of Prop 13 to local government was significant and left them with little ability to fund the necessary improvements in order to create a safe and quality new development, or neighborhood. Developers and builders also found themselves in the position of not being able to fund these improvements due to the extreme upfront cost involved. 8 BEAUMONT NOW | AUGUST 2013 The Story of CFD 93-1 The answer? In 1982, the California State Legislature enacted the; Community Facilities District Act. The "nick name" generally adopted is called Mello-Roos, named after the Acts co-authors, Senator Henry Mello and Assemblyman Mike Roos. Mello Roos Explained Imagine a typical small city. On one side of the city you have the "older" more established neighborhoods. Schools are older, streets need to be resurfaced, and underground pipes are in constant need of repair. Take the other side of town, a developer comes in and develops this area, a builder builds homes on the land, and the new homeowner has new everything… and pays the exact same amount in tax rate? No. The public had a better idea. Why not allow the new homebuyers, with full disclosure, make the decision to buy these new homes with all of their benefits and pay back the money through a special tax ("pass-through tax") collected by the County Tax Collector? This became known as the Mello-Roos tax. • You can pay annually on your tax bill. Annually, as set when started, some pay the same amount each year (fixed); some pay less in the first years and more in the later years (2 percent slope); some have services included; some show services separately. The Bright Future Ahead So far, this visionary approach under the Community Facilities Districts program has built $227.8 million in public improvements since the mid-1990s. It's been done through using innovative financing that makes up the heart of the public improvements program. "Beaumont's inspired way of doing public improvements shows how builders and local government — working cooperatively — can improve everyday life," said Mayor Roger Berg. Beaumont, with its well-known charm, affordable homes, and growing array of shopping, plans many new improvements in the future that will bring jobs, keep traffic flowing smoothly and meet the needs of a growing city. Residents, business owners, visitors and commuters Mello Roos My Choice? will see a host of new projects—ranging from new interchanges and street There are multiple ways to pay CFD widening to synchronizing traffic signals special taxes (Mello-Roos Your Choice). along major thoroughfares. It's part of a • You may pay off the entire amount constantly expanding initiative on behalf in full. of Beaumont residents. • You may pay off a portion and reduce your annual tax bill.

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