Local Taxes

The Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) voted March 18 to approve a stipulated settlement fining the city of Fountain Valley $18,000 for using tax dollars to campaign for a sales tax measure, in violation of the Political Reform Act. Government entities are banned from spending public funds to advocate for or against ballot measures. Like many local governments, Fountain Valley attempted to get around this ban by paying for a magazine ad that presented a very positive view of Measure…

Voter-approved sale tax rate increases will take effect April 1 in many areas of the state, the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration notified retailers in a special notice. In 11 cities, the new tax rate will be 10.25 percent. Ten of the cities are in Los Angeles County (Bell Gardens, Bellflower, City of Commerce, Lancaster, Lomita, Palmdale, San Fernando, Signal Hill, South El Monte, and West Hollywood). The remaining 10.25 percent city is El Cerrito, in Contra Costa…

Updated election results indicate that only one of the six local taxes in March 2 elections was approved by voters. All of the measures would earmark revenue for specific purposes, making them special taxes that require at least two-thirds of the vote to pass. The final official vote count for a parcel tax placed on the ballot by the Marin County Flood Control and Water Conservation District indicated that with 700 ballots cast, the measure fell three votes short of…

Preliminary election results indicate that only one of the local taxes on March 2 ballots was approved by voters, while three were rejected and the fate of two remains uncertain based on early results. All of the measures would earmark revenue for specific purposes, making them special taxes that require at least two-thirds of the vote to pass. The measure that clearly passed will impose a parcel tax in a Marin County district that includes just 22 improved parcels, and…

Voters in several parts of the state will decide the fate of local tax measures – primarily parcel taxes – in March and May. The table below, compiled by CalTax using data from local elections offices and media reports, will be posted online and updated with results after the elections. All of the measures are special taxes that need at least a two-thirds vote to be approved, and all were placed on the ballot by local government bodies acting in…

The Fair Political Practices Commission, which is responsible for enforcing California’s campaign finance and disclosure laws, unanimously approved a $1.35 million penalty against Los Angeles County on August 20 after investigating claims that the county used public funds to campaign in favor of a sales tax increase. CalTax submitted a letter to the FPPC urging the agency to approve the penalty. The county paid a political consulting firm approximately $1 million for a “communications plan” that included radio, television and…

California voters rejected 142 of the 237 local tax and bond measures on the March 3 ballot, according to the counties’ final vote tallies. The complete results, including descriptions of the measures and their estimated cost to taxpayers, are posted on the CalTax website. The counties provided their official results much later this year, as the governor issued an executive order giving them three extra weeks to count ballots and certify results. While the preliminary tallies made it clear that…

While some local governments have withdrawn tax measures from upcoming elections due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many are moving forward with ballot measures asking voters to approve tax increases. The Palo Alto City Council voted March 19 to discontinue development of a local business headcount tax for the November election. The council was preparing to consider tax rates and review results from a business climate survey, but staff recommended that the council discontinue work on the tax in light of…