tax

Higher fuel taxes are set to start November 1, 2017, raising the base gasoline excise tax from 18 cents to 30 cents per gallon. Senate Bill 1 was signed into law by California Jerry Brown and contains other increases that will cover the state's transportation needs for the next ten years with an extra $52 billion in revenue.

Other funds are coming from a new transportation improvement fee based on vehicle value, and paying off past transportation loans, Caltrans savings, and new charges on diesel fuel and zero-emission vehicles.

If anyone thought they knew how the South Lake Tahoe City Council was going to vote on the proposed Vacation Home Rental (VHR) Ordinance on Tuesday they were most likely surprised with the turn of events after hours of public comment and Council discussion.

City staff had two weeks to create a new Vacation Home Rental Ordinance based on input and bring it to the Council to vote on a first reading October 17.

The City Council has sought to create an ordinance that both recognizes and protects the City's vibrant VHR industry while also improving the quality of life of the citizens.

Abelow Pratt & Associates announced it has implemented Riskalyze, the world’s first first risk alignment platform, which mathematically pinpoints a client’s Risk Number® and equips advisors to empower fearless investors.

On Tuesday, a majority of city council agreed on a revised VHR (Vacation Home Rental) ordinance. In two weeks we will vote on the first reading of the ordinance and if a majority supports it, on November 7th would be the final vote to adopt the revised regulations and rules. The ordinance would then go into effect 30 days later.

El Dorado County initiated the "Good Neighbor Program" in 2014 after holding a public meeting on October 23 of that year.

Tax Collector Cherie Raffety said during the meeting that the County wanted vacation homes to be a good neighbor instead of creating a situation that causes Sheriff's deputies to be called out for excessive noise. Management companies were to go to neighbors, introduce themselves and leave contact info.

There are a few openings for volunteer tax-aide counselors for the 2017 tax season to provide free personal income tax assistance in El Dorado County for seniors and low-to-moderate income residents under the AARP Tax-Aide program.

The residents of a local affordable housing complex are looking forward to a facelift of the place they call home. The Sierra Garden Apartments, located at 1801 Lake Tahoe Boulevard in South Lake Tahoe, are set to receive a $15 million renovation funded through Low-Income Housing Tax Credits and tax-exempt bonds.

El Dorado County Assessor Karl Weiland today announced the assessed value of
all taxable property in El Dorado County increased by almost six percent from last year. The $31.5 billion property tax roll, which reflects the assessed value as of January 1st, 2017 is approximately $1.7 billion above last year’s assessed value of $29.8 billion.

The $31.5 billion dollar roll generates about $315 million in property taxes every year that support schools, public safety, local districts, cities and County government services.

The Placer County Board of Supervisors have approved two chunks of money to go to their plans to transform North Lake Tahoe into a thriving, local community and, at the same time, provide visitors with a great experience.

Now halfway complete, the "Resort Triangle" will consist of a continuous 62-mile trail that runs from the Town of Truckee to Northstar, then to Kings Beach, to Tahoe City and back to Truckee.

There is no need to rush into an ordinance regulating the sale of marijuana in South Lake Tahoe. That was the overwhelming opinion of the SLT City Council Tuesday night after a special, four-hour long Cannabis Workshop.

"We owe it to our community to make sure we take every measure to protect them," said SLT Mayor Austin Sass.

SnowGlobe, the annual outdoor music festival in South Lake Tahoe, has come to town over the New Year's Eve holiday since 2011, and now they want to add ten years to their contract that expires this year.

During Tuesday, August 15th's South Lake Tahoe City Council meeting, promoters will make a presentation to the City outlining their plans, showing how they think they can become the largest funding source of South Lake Tahoe projects and non-profits.

Over the next six months the North Lake Tahoe Resort Association (NLTRA) will get $1,779,495 from Placer County after the Board of Supervisors approved the contract Tuesday.

Of the contract, $1,728,262 will fund NLTRA marketing and visitor services, with $16,104 earmarked for NLTRA’s participation in regional transportation planning efforts and $33,129 for their support in developing a capital projects partnership to complete goals in the Tourism Master Plan.

I founded LimeBike because I wanted my son and the future generation to live on a healthy planet. LimeBike aims to provide a sustainable solution to that first and last mile problem: how do we get people from a central location (such as their homes) to their destination (such as their office or the grocery store) in an affordable and accessible way while eliminating our carbon footprints? How do we get the future generations to change their behavior so we can save this planet?

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - What does a win-win-win vacation home rental (VHR) ordinance look like?

It may not yet be known after today's workshop held during the South Lake Tahoe City Council meeting in front of a full house, but all sides appear to be committed to creating something that works for everyone in the community.

Cities across the country are grappling with their own ordinances for VHRs as the new trend towards vacationing centers around renting a home instead of staying in a motel or hotel.

July kicks off the busiest time of the year for our city. Schools out, the temps are soaring in the valleys to the west and east of us, the roads are free of snow, and visitors from all over the world are getting away to see beautiful places and enjoy the great outdoors. For many of our businesses this is is the best time of the year. For many locals who like to play on the mountain trails and along the beach and eventually need to get to work, this is the hardest time of the year.

Members are sought for two volunteer positions for the Douglas County Sheriff's Office (DCSO): men and women for both staffing the substations and working on the Citizen Patrol.

Citizen Patrol is a group of volunteers who receive training, uniforms, and a partner to complete various non-hazardous duties for the Sheriff’s Office, they provide invaluable services to DCSO, saving taxpayers a tremendous amount of tax dollars.

The much anticipated socio-economic study of the impact vacation home rentals (VHR) have on South Lake Tahoe has been released.

Michael Baker International was hired by the City to complete the study and create the report to identify emerging impacts of a growing industry, particularly impacts that may be directly affecting residents and persons who work in the city. They teamed with California State University, Sacramento on the project.

I took a couple of field trips this month related to learning more about cannabis and how it may affect our city if retail, commercial grows, testing, and edible production are implemented. I learned a lot and will share some of the highlights with you.

The first trip was to Breckenridge, a visit I piggybacked on top of a wedding I attended in Vail. I met with their Mayor, City Manager (formerly the police chief) and the assistant city manager. We met for two hours and our talk was primarily centered on their experiences with the legalization of cannabis in Breckenridge.

Prevent identity theft and get your documents shredded at the South Tahoe High Booster Club's fundraiser on Friday, May 19 at the American Legion Parking Lot from noon to 4:00 p.m.

For just $10 a box, your documents will be securely shredded. Plus, your donation is tax deductible!

The Booster Club gave the $20,000 earned at the last year's golf tournament back to the students through grants for 20 sports teams. Those funds went to tournament entry fees, uniforms, equipment and much more.

Going away is the Knight's Inn, and in its place will be Bijou Market Place. Halferty Development today announced the name of their South Lake Tahoe project that was formerly known as Bijou Park Creek Watershed Management Southwest Corner Project.

During Thursday's Planning Commission meeting, the commissioners unanimously adopted the resolution that certified the project's Initial Study, Mitigated Negative Declaration, Initial Environmental Checklist and Mitigated Finding of no significant affect. They also approved the permits so now Halferty Development can move forward.

This past city council meeting all 5 council members agreed to have staff present us a ballot measure that would increase the city sales tax by 1/2%. This came after a survey was completed and results were presented by the outside independent company contracted by the city. The results indicated that almost 68% of the survey respondents supported the increase as long as the funds would be dedicated by law to roads.

Teresa Marty will be spending the next ten years in prison after causing the IRS to pay more than $9 million in false refunds.

The 57-year-old Pollock Pines woman owned Advanced Financial Services (AFS), a tax return preparation business located in Placerville. She conspired with her office manager, Pamela Harris and Rebecca Bandera-Marty to file more than 250 fraudulent federal tax returns claiming more than $60 million in refunds.

A new partner is now on board to help bring a new recreation center and swim complex to South Lake Tahoe, construction of which could start as early as 2018.

Voters in November approved a two percent Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) increase to fund the new project that benefits not only locals but tourists as well.

On behalf of the Tahoe Coalition for the Homeless (TCH), I would like to thank an anonymous donor who has donated $4,500 to extend the operating season of the South Lake Tahoe Warm Room through April 30, 2017. This donation supports our mission of meeting the needs of our neighbors experiencing homelessness by providing warm beds and an overnight refuge from the elements to individuals and families experiencing homelessness in the winter months.