Cities’ Novel Plan to Share Tax Revenues Falls Apart

An innovative agreement between Lancaster and Palmdale to share future sales tax revenues has disintegrated, leaving officials scrambling for explanations and alternatives before the Nov. 4 election, Lancaster Mayor Frank Roberts said Thursday.

After shaking hands on the proposal in August, Palmdale officials repeatedly canceled meetings with Lancaster officials to finalize details, and a formal, written agreement has never been drafted, Roberts said.

Although no one representing Palmdale could be reached for comment Thursday, state Assemblyman George Runner (R-Lancaster), who has acted as a mediator between the two cities, confirmed Roberts’ assessment.

“We thought this was the way to go. It fell through,” Roberts said.

Backers of the proposed arrangement say it would have ended the expensive bidding wars that pit California cities against each other in competition for businesses. Those “poaching wars” typically feature one community offering tax breaks, loans and other incentives to lure big retailers away from neighboring towns.

The sharing plan in the Antelope Valley was so novel that Roberts reported being besieged by fellow public officials at a meeting this month of the League of California Cities. They saluted his vision and wanted to know how he managed to put aside the competitive urges that have intensified statewide since Proposition 13 and other measures have limited the amount of tax revenue cities can collect.

“I finally had to say, ‘It’s off. Palmdale called it off,’ ” Roberts said. “And everybody said, ‘Really? You would have been the model.’ ”

Roberts said he last met with Palmdale Mayor Jim Ledford on Aug. 14 to discuss the proposal but has not been able to reach him since. The assemblyman suggested that the November election, in which two Palmdale City Council seats and Ledford’s position are being contested, may have made officials nervous about an innovation bound to draw controversy.

Revenue sharing in the Antelope Valley may not be dead, however, if Lancaster City Councilman Michael Singer has anything to say about it. Singer has authored a proposal, scheduled for discussion at Tuesday’s City Council meeting, that would revive tax-revenue sharing with a different breakdown, replacing the original 50-50 split.