Employee Revenue Suggestions

Thank you for your revenue suggestions and ideas. Suggestions submitted multiple times, such as increase sales taxes, have only been posted to the page one time. All ideas have been forwarded to appropriate staff. You may not see instant implementation of your ideas; however, these suggestions are helpful for Departments to consider for current and future budgets. Please continue to submit your suggestions.

Updates from October 21, 2008 City Council meeting:

The City of Stockton contracts with the City of Inglewood to perform collections on Police Department issued parking citations.  On Tuesday, October 21, 2008, Council voted to approve an item and adopted and an accompanying ordinance to increase our collections efforts for delinquent citations. Presently, there are delinquent files of over $4 million. The primary reason for delinquencies is that the person has moved out of the area, making them difficult to locate and the "boot" not an option for compliance.

Updated October 23, 2008 - New items appear in bold:

• Sell some of the many City-owned parcels of land.
  
  
• Bake sales every Friday.
  
  
• Eliminate FREE coffee for all city employees. Workers can bring their own stash of their favorite coffee bean.
  
  
• Quit hiring consultant to study everything. You have departments and employees that should be able to do the study. Make them do it.
  
  
• The City is a government entity and a non-profit organization. Only revenue opportunities are property taxes and City Fees.

• Charge the taggers or their families for ALL expenses related to their crime.

• Sell WAMU building.

• Outsource Code Enforcement collections.

• Sell interest in the Arena and Ball Park.

• Allow employees to work a flex schedule.

• Seek suggestions from the community.

• Take out the car dealer platform in the parking lot across from Tio Pepe’s and charge a fee for monthly parking.

• Increase fines for traffic tickets.

• The city should not be in the business of making money.

• Provide Electricity instead of PG&E.

• Increase parking meter fees and parking tickets.

• Better promotion of Arena events to generate more ticket sales.

• Invest in training for front-line employees.

• Increase parking fees, parking (violator) fees, DUI Fees and other police-related traffic fees to help pay for Police services or pay increases.

• Charge a Fire Station fee, for residents and business located within a 5 mile radius of a Fire Station, to help pay for Fire Staff and new construction.

• Increase Parks fees to residents and business to help maintain part-time staff and after school programs.

• Create a "Business Listing Database" online and charge business a yearly fee to be listed on City of Stockton web site. This can help pay for web site cost and development.

• Suspend internet usage for Library patrons with unpaid fines.

• Step up projects of current successful businesses to boost sales tax revenue - Walmart, Food 4 Less, etc.

• Put in gas turbine generators (for peaking power) at MUD, increase the out put power to 2 to three times the whole City usage including all MUD all seasons. Charge City production cost (5 to 10 cents per KW) to pay for all city power consumed. Sell back excess to PG&E. This could result in KW savings to City for street lights and buildings, etc.

• Increase sales taxes, increase utility fees for water/sewer/garbage, increase fees for services provided by the City of Stockton (After School Program, Public Pool, Teen Center, etc.)

• Increase late fees on library books.

• Propose an emergency temporary sales tax increase for San Joaquin County.

• Reduce public time allowed on internet from Library from one hour to 30 minutes; charge use fee for residents and higher fee for out-of-county users.

• Library should sell batteries for Playaways; increase copy fees; sell surplus on EBay or Craig’s List; and sell office and school supplies.

• Seek corporate investor to buy naming rights to the Arena and Ball Park

• Increase the capabilities of the MUD co-generation to include a peaking plant. Sell the produced electric power, and hot water/steam to the Port of Stockton (Old Naval Base) or Wheel it on the Electric Grid for open purchase.

• Actively pursue overdue fines; not allow internet use unless fines are paid.

• Increase arena events 0.50% local supplementary sales tax

• Create assessment districts in older neighborhoods to aid in landscape and infrastructure maintenance. This could be similar to what the Downtown Stockton Alliance does, but on a neighborhood level, with fees paid by residents and businesses alike.

• Remove General Fund resources from the transportation system budget and ask voters to approve a gasoline tax (or other user fee) to pay for maintenance for the city street network.  Those that use the street pay for them.

• Find out where the $7 million dollars is that cannot be accounted for building of the ball park.

• Do not build marina for elite to dock their boats.

• Book and promote Mixed Martial Arts and wrestling at the Civic Auditorium if not the Arena.

• Sell advertising on the City Website and on City Vehicles.

• Increase your recovery/collection units- hire knowledge people who know the laws and the court system to get the City’s money back from those who have damaged City property or have not paid their bills. It might be cheaper to outsource the claims program to a TPA.  Under 300 claims a year are received and over $1.1 million is budgeted.

• Hire a professional event planner for the Event Center to help pay the mortgage.

• Have a recycling drive - Instead of having the waste haulers collect recycling.

• Offer the plain blue and white library card for free. If library users want the fancy art decorated library cards, they can pay a fee for it.

• Organize more events that will bring in outside money, such as Car Shows, Bike Shows, Music festivals, etc.

• Offer employee workshops to other agencies, businesses, and the public for a registration fee.

• Collect the bicycle licensing fee ($9.25) at the time the bicycle is purchased from a retailer. After 3 years, a renewal fee could be collected. Not only will this generate more revenue, it will also help return bicycles to their rightful owner if the bicycle is ever lost or stolen.

• Charge employees a monthly fee for parking.

• Charge Paragary’s rent

• Make sure all fees are actually being collected.

• Make sure all businesses are licensed; if not, fine them.

• Change business hours to allow for citizens with jobs to actually come in and pay their bills or get permits.

• Staff will have to start "working smarter," reviewing the way things are done to achieve maximum efficiency.

• Citizens conducting business with the City that generates revenue should not have to wait an hour to make a utility payment or to get a building permit.

• City services should be linked so each person has an account with the City. If they are delinquent in one area, such as water bill, library fines, or parking permits, they should be required to pay the balance before receiving any other City services, including business licenses and building permits.

• FC6389 allows law enforcement agencies to charge a storage fee for weapons that are relinquished to a law enforcement agency by persons subject to a protective order. Establish policy that will allow us to charge a "reasonable" storage fee and procedure for billing and collection of fees.

• We are using OnBase as an electronic database for all plans. Why not do the same for files and documents, saving cost of storage and space for paper records.

• The after school program fee should be the same as regular daycare fees. Take a look at what Lodi Unified School District does.

• Use the vacant parking structure at the Arena or Ed Coy Garage as a storage facility for impounding cars. The tow company can charge a tow fee and PD can collect storage fees.

• If one of the city sponsored venues (i., Bob Hope, event center) functions does not sell out, make tickets available to city employees at a reduced cost, resulting in increased revenue for that particular performance.

• Reduce Mayor and City Councilmember pay by 50 percent.

• Implement Stockton Municipal Fire Insurance. Residents could pay the City for fire insurance. With our Class 1 City rating & great Fire Department we can keep our fire losses to a minimum.

• Even though Business License and Building Permits are revenue generating departments, there is a need to have some down time, due to staffing levels. Actually, CDD should be allowed to close an additional hour like HR and Admin Services. This would allow staff to get work done uninterrupted, thus increasing the turnaround time for building permits being issued and increases the City's revenue.

• Switch to charging departments for energy costs based on amount of floor area they occupy. This is used in many private sector companies to control these costs. This would not directly raise revenues, but could save money over longer term as departments become sensitive to the costs of paying for energy.

• Rent out kitchen facilities and hall at WAMU building for private functions.

• In most cities in California there is contention between the public safety departments and the other departments in regards to budgeted funds. When funds become tight the City Council, Mayor, and City Manager are put in the position of choosing between public safety and operational needs of the balance of the City’s departments. In order to eliminate this contention, an initiative should be placed on the ballot to establish a percentage of the General Fund allocated to the Fire Department and the Police Department in the approximate percentages currently allocated for each. Additionally, special assessment districts would be set up. A special assessment district for the Fire Department and a special assessment district for the Police Department to fund any financial needs beyond the percentages/funds allotted from the General Fund. The percentages allocated from the General Fund would be fixed and would never change. With the passing of this initiative the public safety departments would have to request additional funds by way of a vote of the citizens of Stockton in order to increase funding to their specific special assessment district. This would permanently eliminate any contention of funds between public safety and other City departments. It would also provide the public safety departments a method to request increases in funding and warranted and approved by the citizens of Stockton.
  

• Start a program to keep families in their homes. Buy mortgages from bank for homes going into foreclosure at 70 percent of current assessed value or 70 percent of the outstanding loan, whichever is lower. Refinance with current homeowner for 30 year loan at current interest rates (Assessed value – Equity*) *Equity determined as difference between current assessed value and outstanding loan before refinance if less than 0 than 0 equity). Example: A house going into foreclosure has an original mortgage = $200,000 Current Outstanding Mortgage = $175,000. Property currently appraised at $100,000. City buys loan from bank for $70,000. Homeowner refinances with City for 30 year loan at 6.25% for $100,000. (Homeowner has no equity) Net result: Homeowner stays in home. City invests $70,000 and will receive Interest at 6.25% and principal on $100,000. City receives property tax revenues from property. Homeowner stays and spends in City and City receives sales tax revenues. Bank is able to write off the loan sale for a loss of $105,000. (Bank will not have to pay all the costs associated with foreclosure and selling the property.)

• Take back the Podesto Teen Center and run it in a way that promotes teen events and activities as well as providing educational resources. Teens need fun events on Friday and Saturday nights and need opportunities for homework tutoring and vocational training during the week. If parents see programming happening at the teen center, they'll likely be willing to help support it by way of a monthly or annual membership.

• The City of Stockton should adopt a policy of booting every car tied to a parking citation that has not been paid and is over six months old. In order for the owner to have the boot removed the owner must pay all out standing City of Stockton parking citations and associated fees. If the car, after being booted, remains in the same street or City parking lot location for seven days or more that car would be moved to an impound lot where fees for the towing and storage of the car would be incurred over and above the parking citations and booting fees. This has proven very successful in Washington D.C. and other cities.
  

Submit your comments below:

Link to Employee Feedback Form


Return to Q and A Main Menu