2023 Tulsa sales tax & bond issues

PROPOSITION NO. 1 BOND PROPOSITION STREETS, BRIDGES AND TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS BONDS: Shall the City of Tulsa, Oklahoma, incur an indebtedness by issuing its bonds in the sum of One Hundred Seventy Million, Fifty-Five Thousand and no/100s Dollars ($170,055,000.00) to be issued in series, to provide funds (either with or without state or federal aid) for the purpose of acquiring, constructing, reconstructing, extending, enlarging, improving, and repairing streets, bridges and transportation systems within said City; and levy and collect an annual tax, in addition to all other taxes, upon all taxable property in said City, sufficient to pay the interest on said bonds as it falls due, and also to constitute a sinking fund for the payment of principal of said bonds when due, said bonds to bear interest at not to exceed the rate of ten percent (10%), per year, payable semi-annually and to become due serially within twenty-five (25) years from their date?

PROPOSITION NO. 2 BOND PROPOSITION COMMUNITY FACILITIES BONDS Shall the City of Tulsa, Oklahoma, incur an indebtedness by issuing its bonds in the sum of One Hundred Forty-Six Million, Seven Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand and no/100s Dollars ($146,725,000.00) to be issued in series, to provide funds (either with or without state or federal aid) for the purpose of purchasing, constructing, equipping, improving, extending, renovating, and repairing public parks and park lands, cultural and recreational facilities, all to be owned exclusively by said City; and levy and collect an annual tax, in addtion to all other taxes, upon all the taxable property in said City sufficient to pay the interest on such bonds as it falls due and also to constitute a sinking fund for the payment of the principal thereof when due, said bonds to bear interest at not to exceed the rate of ten percent (10%), per year, payable semi-annually and to become due serially within twenty-five (25) years from their date?

PROPOSITION NO. 3 BOND PROPOSITION PUBLIC SAFETY BUILDINGS AND FACILITIES BONDS Shall the City of Tulsa, Oklahoma, incur an indebtedness by issuing its bonds in the sum of Sixty-Eight Million, One Hundred Twenty Thousand and no/100s Dollars ($68,120,000.00) to be issued in series, to provide funds (either with or without state or federal aid) for the purpose of constructing, reconstructing, improving, repairing and/or purchasing public safety buildings and facilities, all to be owned exclusively by said City; and levy and collect an annual tax, in addition to all other taxes, upon all taxable property in said City, sufficient to pay the interest on said bonds as it falls due, and also to constitute a sinking fund for the payment of principal of said bonds when due, said bonds to bear interest at not to exceed the rate of ten percent (10%), per year, payable semi-annually and to become due serially within twenty-five (25) years from their date?

PROPOSITION NO. 4 SALES TAX 2023 TEMPORARY SALES TAX Do you approve City of Tulsa Ordinance No. 25041, the 2023 Temporary Sales Tax, to collect a ninety-five one-hundredths of one percent (.95%) sales tax for the funding of the public projects of the City of Tulsa, and paying debt service on indebtedness issued for such purposes, commencing at the expiration of the 2021 Miscellaneous Capital Improvements Temporary Sales Tax and expiring on June 30, 2030; to be deposited into a limited-purpose fund; to be managed and spent by the City of Tulsa only on public projects and paying debt service on indebtedness issued for such purposes, in accordance with Ordinance No. 25042?

The three bond propositions were approved during the 5 p.m. regular Tulsa City Council meeting on May 24, 2023, under Mayor's Items, 4.f. The sales tax proposition was approved in the same meeting under item 4.e., with the corresponding "sales tax policy" ordinance under item 7.b. and sales tax code amendment under item 7.c.

For your convenience and a more permanent record, here are the backup documents containing the resolutions and ordinances approved by the Tulsa City Council:

• 2023 City of Tulsa General Obligation Bond Issues Election Resolution with list of "specific" projects
• 2023 City of Tulsa Sales Tax Election Resolution (final, adopted version)
• City of Tulsa Ordinance No. 25041: Title 43, new Section 100.5, "2023 Temporary Sales Tax"
• 2023 City of Tulsa Ordinance 25042, Title 43-M 2023 Temporary Sales Tax Policy (final, adopted version)

Here are the "specific projects" listed for the three bond propositions and the sales tax proposition. Note that the amounts for the listed projects on the bond propositions add up to exactly 70% of each bond issue amount. Under state law (62 O.S. 574), cities are required to list specific projects and amounts to be expended for at least 70% of the proceeds of the bonds. As if the listed projects weren't vague enough ("Citywide Traffic Engineering"), the city doesn't even have to list a reason or a description of 30% of the proceeds, which amounts to $115,470,000 that the city can spend without voter awareness or approval.

The ordinance spelling out the sales tax projects is known is Tulsa as a "Brown Ordinance," in honor of the late Darven Brown, the City Attorney who came up with the idea of a binding ordinance with a public process for amendment as a way of reassuring the public prior to the passage of the first "Third Penny for Capital Improvements" tax in 1980.

UPDATE: In order to avoid confusion, I removed two superseded versions of ordinances which were NOT adopted by the Council.