Want to avoid that lump of coal in your stocking? Then do your last-minute shopping locally.

Nothing burns Santa’s beard worse than holiday shoppers who can’t see the value in keeping their sales tax dollars at home. For those naughty individuals who’ve already purchased their gifts out of town, there’s still a week left to make good with St. Nick.

Simi Valley, like most U.S. cities, remains stuck in an economic rut.

As of last summer, which marked the first quarter of the city’s 2009-2010 fiscal year, six of nine major revenue categories had fallen below projected levels. Those six include sales and property taxes, which make up more than 60 percent of the city’s general fund budget. Property tax recepits were about $350,000 below what the city expected. Sales tax numbers released by the state Board of Equalization dropped almost 16 percent compared to the same period last year.

If the negative trend continues, Simi Valley’s sales and property taxes could be down $3 million by mid-2010.

With Simi’s developer fees drying up and property tax receipts on the decline due to the sagging real estate market, the city’s coffers are as dependent as ever on revenue from local sales tax. And at no time is consumer spending greater than in the fourth quarter of the calendar year, especially around the holidays.

Think of your Christmas and Hanukkah spending as a contribution to the quality of life provided by your city. For every dollar that you spend locally, a penny goes toward city services such as road repair and police protection.

And having to leave town to buy gifts at the big chain stores is no longer an excuse for not shopping locally; all of the bigbox stores now have Simi Valley locations. Whether you shop at the department stores or at the mom-and-pops, you can usually find what you’re looking for in the retail establishments close to home.

In life, it’s important to think globally but act locally. That goes for shopping, too.

So show Santa how nice you really are this season, and spend your hard-earned dollars in Simi, not out.