California Voters Will See 273 Tax Increases on Local Ballots in November

Tax Measures Would Increase Cost of Living by More Than $22 Billion if Approved

SACRAMENTO – When Californians cast their votes in November, in addition to selecting a new governor and determining the fate of 14 statewide measures, they will vote on 273 local tax measures that would increase the annual tax burden by billions of dollars, the California Taxpayers Association reported today.

The measures propose $3 billion in direct taxes (sales tax, parcel tax, etc.), along with $19.5 billion in bonds that would require residents to pay higher property taxes for several decades, until the bonds are repaid with interest.

“As Californians struggle to keep up with the state’s cost of living, local governments are asking them to raise taxes in nearly every corner of the state,” CalTax President Robert Gutierrez said. “The election results are likely to show that instead of adding to the unaffordability crisis, Californians would like to see the politicians do better with the high taxes we already pay.”

The full list of local tax measures is available on the CalTax website and will be updated with results after the election.

Californians have added provisions to the state constitution ensuring that the public has the right to vote on local taxes before they can be imposed. This gives voters the ultimate power over the November measures, which include:

• Sixty-one proposed sales tax increases (known as “transactions and use taxes” at the local level), including several that received authorization from the Legislature and Governor Gavin Newsom to allow rates above the state’s 2 percent cap on the amount that can be added to California’s statewide rate of 7.25 percent, which is the highest in the nation.

• Nine taxes that seek to exploit the Upland loophole, a California court ruling that allows measures to evade the two-thirds vote requirement for special taxes if a measure is placed on the ballot by an initiative rather than directly by elected officials.

• Seventy parcel taxes that would increase the cost of housing and operating small businesses in this state.

• Eighty-two school bonds and seven general obligation bonds, all of which would increase the portion of property taxes not covered by Proposition 13’s 1 percent limit on property taxes. The bonds would cost property owners more than $1.15 billion annually in higher property taxes, according to the tax increase projections provided for 76 of the measures.

The tax with the largest projected cost to taxpayers is the San Francisco Bay Area’s Measure RTM – a $980 million sales tax that would increase the rate by 0.5 percent in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties, and 1 percent in San Francisco, with revenue earmarked for public transportation spending.

The next most expensive proposal is a San Diego County sales tax projected to cost taxpayers $400 million a year.

“The sales tax rate is already above 11 percent in some parts of the state, and is continually climbing in many others,” Gutierrez said. “Under the new software tax signed into law by Governor Newsom, these tax rates now apply not just to vehicles, dining at local restaurants and most items you buy at the store, but also to all of the software subscriptions that individuals and businesses rely on.”

The November measures are in addition to the 92 local tax and bond measures that were on the ballot in June.

Under state law, local governments are barred from using tax dollars or other public resources to promote ballot measures. The state’s campaign watchdog, the Fair Political Practices Commission, investigates and enforces violations of this law – most recently, an action against Nevada County for sending pro-tax mailers to residents just before the election.

The California Taxpayers Association, now in its 100th year of service, is the state’s largest and oldest association representing California taxpayers.