The council voted at its Sept. 23 meeting to oppose both Proposition 53 and Proposition 54. Councilman Fred Fowler was absent and Councilman John Howe abstained from the vote.

Prop. 53 would set aside up to 3 percent of the state's general fund revenue, several hundred million dollars yearly, to build and maintain parks, schools, water projects, roads and other public works.

Half of the money would go to local government and half would go to the state for local infrastructure projects. If passed, Prop. 53 would go into effect in fiscal year 2006-2007.

Proponents of Prop. 53 argue that the measure is needed to improve the quality of life without raising taxes.

But Councilman Jack Walker raised objections to the proposition, citing the state may hold back on other funds if it is obligated to allocate funds to infrastructure projects. "The state has a nasty habit of giving with one hand and taking away with another," Walker said.

The council also agreed to oppose Prop. 54, though it had previously opposed the measure in a July city council meeting.

Dubbed the "Racial Privacy Initiative," the measure would ban any state or local agency from compiling information on race or ethnicity. If passed, Prop. 54 would become effective on Jan. 1, 2005.

The initiative's opponents say that it would ban the collection of critical information that helps fight chronic diseases like breast cancer, helps prevent hate crimes and domestic violence and that combats discrimination.

But proponents of the measure say these effects are exaggerations, because of provisions in the measure that exempt certain organizations from the ban on racial data. The exemptions would allow certain organizations such as law enforcement authorities and hospitals to collect racial data for medical research or public safety issues.

At the council meeting Walker said, "If there are any problems along [ethnic lines] in our city, we wouldn't know about it. That's just wrong." Walker said the city should determine the best needs of the community and opposed the state's interference in the city's policies.

Speaking against the measure, Mayor Julia Miller said, "We did oppose Prop. 54 at our July 22 meeting so we're just reinforcing that."

The city of Sunnyvale previously joined forces with the Santa Clara County Coalition for an Informed California to oppose Prop. 54.

The recall election will take place on October 7. For more information or to look up a polling place, visit the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters website at http://www.sccvote.org.