City of Westminster v. County of Orange

Straw & Gilmartin, Lawrence J. Straw, Jr., Paul T. Gough, Kaplanis & Grimm and Trevor A. Grimm for Intervener and Respondent.

Ronald A. Zumbrun, Anthony T. Caso, Jonathan M. Coupal, and Jeffrey T. Even as Amici Curiae on behalf of Intervener and Respondent.

OPINION

CROSBY, J.

In a superior court action for injunctive and declaratory relief, the City of Westminster unsuccessfully challenged the constitutionality of Proposition 62, a statewide statutory initiative passed in November 1986. The initiative will nullify the city's recently enacted utility users' tax unless the municipal electorate approves the levy by November 5, 1988. We believe the requirement of local voter ratification violates the California Constitution and reverse with directions accordingly.

The City of Westminster is a general law city. It has encountered increasing fiscal difficulty in recent years, partially as a result of Proposition 13, an earlier statewide initiative, and the abatement of federal revenue sharing. On September 23, 1986, the Westminster City Council enacted a 5 percent utility users' tax and designated the revenues for the city's general fund. The tax became effective January 1, 1987,…