Chan’s proposal would ask city voters to reinstate the previous structure of the city’s Overpaid Executive Tax, which imposes a tax on businesses where the highest-paid executive earns more than 100 times the median compensation of San Francisco employees.. In November 2024, voters repealed parts of the executive tax through Proposition M, a comprehensive business tax reform measure. Chan’s proposal allows other changes made in Prop M to remain intact.
The plan would also raise taxes on ride-hailing companies, including Uber, Lyft and Waymo, similar to Proposition L on the November 2024 ballot. Although voters approved Prop L, the proposal did not take effect because Prop M included a provision that nullified the ride-share tax.
A Waymo driverless taxi drives through Downtown San Francisco, California, on Nov. 2, 2023. (Carlos Avila Gonzalez/SF Chronicle )
The ballot measure proposal needs only a 50% majority to pass, and could generate around $150-200 million annually. It has been submitted for a hearing before the Board of Supervisors Rules Committee; however, it automatically qualifies for the November 2026 ballot because four supervisors signed on — Chan, along with Supervisors Shamann Walton, Jackie Fielder and Chyanne Chen.
Chan, who represents the Richmond District, said the funding, which would not be earmarked for a specific purpose, is needed as the city weathers cuts from the federal government to healthcare, food benefits and the city’s public transportation system, which is facing a deficit of more than $300 million.
“Our city government is being put into an impossible position to step up to the plate, which is to say that this is the time and moment that billionaires need to pay their fair share,” Chan said. “We know that since January, they’ve gotten their way with the Trump administration through tax cuts.”