Fresno residents will have an opportunity to vote on a general tax in November that is intended to serve as a Measure C replacement stopgap measure.
The Fresno City Council voted 6-1 – with Councilmember Annalisa Pera the lone dissenting vote – to place a half-cent general sales tax on the November ballot on Thursday.
Driving the news: The city is set to lose $54 million annually due to the upcoming expiration of Measure C next year and the lack of a successor measure on the November ballot.
Social justice groups and Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer, among other backers, proposed the Better Roads, Safe Streets tax initiative, which would be a half-cent sales tax to fund transportation projects throughout the county.
But the initiative failed its random sampling test of signatures in May, requiring a full count by the county’s elections office.
When the elections office presented the measure to the Fresno County Board of Supervisors two weeks ago, the board ordered a study, which takes 30 days. That means the measure will not come back before the board before the Aug. 7 deadline to place initiatives onto the November ballot.
The big picture: With no Measure C successor in sight, Dyer, City Council President Nelson Esparza and Councilmember Mike Karbassi proposed a half-cent general tax for the November ballot.
The initiative will act as a stopgap measure and would sunset if a county-wide half-cent transportation tax measure is approved by the voters. If not, the tax has a 10-year lifespan.
The city projects that the tax will bring in $65 million annually.
How the money is spent: One concern brought up during a lengthy discussion at Thursday’s council meeting centered on the nature of a general sales tax.
All money the city takes in from a general sales tax goes into the general fund, which is then dispersed by the mayor and the city council. There is no guarantee that the money will actually be spent on transportation projects, which was the basis of Perea’s opposition.
City Attorney Andrew Janz noted that any guardrails on how the money is spent would increase the vote threshold needed to pass from a simple majority to a two-thirds vote.
What they’re saying: Dyer said getting any measure to pass with a two-thirds vote is unlikely, noting that Measure P received 52% support and the failed effort in 2022 to renew Measure C received 58% of the vote.
“Getting a two-thirds vote, other than Measure Z – which is for the zoo – I don’t see any future measures getting passed,” Dyer said.
The mayor added, “This measure – even though it’s not as specific as people want – it does give us the best opportunity to be able to prevent layoffs, to maintain essential services, and to ensure that we have good money going forward without having to impact our reserves.”
Councilmember Tyler Maxwell promised that he will advocate to spend money raised in the general tax to projects that depend on Measure C funding.
What we’re watching: The only situation where the general tax will not appear on the November ballot would be if the Fresno County Board of Supervisors calls a special meeting to place the Better Roads, Safe Streets tax on the ballot. In that case, Dyer said he would veto the move to place the general tax on the ballot.