Whereas wildfire poses the single greatest natural disaster threat to the City of Nevada City, and the County Measure (V) to mitigate wildfire threat failed leaving the City without any dedicated funding source for the purposes of this measure; and

Whereas Measure C is a Special Tax requiring that all revenue raised be dedicated solely to the purposes of the measure; and a Citizen Oversight Committee will provide both oversight and ample opportunity for community input and transparency; and the measure requires a super majority of 2/3 of the vote to be passed; and

Whereas the City of Nevada City Fire Safety Advisory Committee has identified millions of dollars of works to fulfill the Nevada City Wildfire Prevention and Mitigation Plan; and the city’s General Funds are inadequate to meet those costs, and

Whereas Nevada City is a small city making it difficult to qualify for Grants without having matching funds and Measure C would provide such required matching funds; and

Whereas the measure sunsets in 5 years; revenues can only be used for wildfire prevention and mitigation; requires citizen oversight, and input; has strong built in transparency; and

Whereas the funds raised by the half percent sales tax will be focused on Public Safety and Education including clearly developed and distributed evacuation procedures; Vegetation Management throughout the city; Home Hardening including support for those needing it, as well as expanded, free local green waste disposal, and

Whereas Measure C implementation will involve coordination with local Fire Wise Councils, the County, CalFire, and other organizations working locally to prevent and mitigate wildfires thereby enhancing Wildfire Prevention and Mitigation in surrounding areas as well as the City,

Now, Therefore Be It Resolved, that the Nevada County Democratic party endorses and supports this vital public safety measure to ensure the health, prosperity and longevity of our county’s capital city.

Approved January 22, 2024