After a looming delay in a countywide transportation tax successor, Fresno will attempt its own replacement on the local ballot in November.

Mayor Jerry Dyer and Fresno City Council President Nelson Esparza announced on Thursday a plan to retain the half-cent sales tax that could be lost if Measure C is not replaced. The sales tax would apply only to items sold in Fresno, and only Fresno voters could decide its fate.

The Fresno City Council is scheduled to vote July 30 to place the sales tax item on the Nov. 3 ballot.

Measure C, the Fresno County half-cent sales tax dedicated to transportation projects, expires June 30, 2027. An effort for a successor measure stalled at the county level.

“That places millions of dollars in road funding from the San Joaquin River to the southern edge of Kingsburg on a collision course for extinction,” Esparza said. “We are not going to stand by and let that happen, by default.”

If placed on the ballot and approved by voters, the new measure would raise an estimated $65 million a year. The tax would go into effect on July 1, 2027. It would sunset in either 10 years, or if a countywide sales tax is approved in the future. Fresno’s tax rate would remain at 8.35%.

During last month’s budget hearings, Dyer called himself a fiscal conservative. He told The Bee on Thursday that placing the sunset provision in the potential tax shows that to be true.

“I also think it’s being responsible as a mayor and certainly as a council, in continuing to be able to provide the service levels that we need. We don’t want to lay off employees. We don’t want to go backwards on our roads conditions. And we certainly don’t want to go backwards in all the achievements that we’ve had over the years in terms of public safety,” Dyer said.

Voters will still decide on a Fresno County transportation tax, but it is likely to take place in March 2028 instead of this November.

Fresno City Mayor Jerry Dyer is joined by Fresno City Council President Nelson Esparza, far left, Councilmember Mike Karbassi, right, and other city leaders in announcing a proposed half-cent sales tax to replace Measure C.

Fresno City Mayor Jerry Dyer is joined by Fresno City Council President Nelson Esparza, far left, Councilmember Mike Karbassi, right, and other city leaders in announcing a proposed half-cent sales tax to replace Measure C.

Consequences of letting Measure C expire

Dyer said without Measure C, the city would lose $54 million a year placing 217 jobs in jeopardy.

“The loss of these funds would severely, severely hinder our ability to maintain streets and sidewalks, pedestrian trails, trim our trees, and to do litter abatement,” Dyer said.

The Fresno attempt will go to the general fund instead of a specific purpose. General fund taxes only need a majority of voters to support; a specific tax needs two-thirds.

Esparza said the city should pursue a general tax because of timing.

“We couldn’t get the whole community to agree on what a county wide would look like. There was no time for the council to come to an agreement amongst ourselves,” Esparza said.

While the news conference at City Hall was about spending on transportation, there is no guarantee that is where the money will go. A general fund tax can be spent anywhere the city council desires.

District 2 Councilmember Mike Karbassi, who is co-sponsoring the measure with Esparza, called supporting the tax “a no brainer.” He said there is a cost and impact of “doing nothing.”

District 6 Councilmember Nick Richardson, who was not at the news conference, told The Bee: “Surprising the council rarely ends well.”

Measure C successor vote in 2028

Better Roads, Safe Streets, the social justice coalition supporting a Measure C successor, gathered enough signatures to place a future tax on the ballot. In a political maneuver allowed by law, the Fresno County Board of Supervisors called for an economic study on the tax’s impact. The study is not likely to be completed until after Aug. 7 — the deadline to place items on the November ballot. The next scheduled supervisor meeting is Aug. 11.

Fresno County Board of Supervisors Chair Garry Bredefeld said he does not plan to call a special meeting before Aug. 11.

Esparza, D-Fresno, is running in November for Board of Equalization District 1 against state Sen. Shannon Grove, R-Bakersfield. He said he is not concerned about how voters may view supporting a tax.

“That hasn’t been a consideration throughout this process,” Esparza said. “I’m focused on doing the right thing and leaving the city fiscally solvent.”

Fresno City Council President Nelson Esparza is joined by Mayor Jerry Dyer, councilmember Mike Karbassi, City Manager Georgeanne White and other city leaders in announcing a proposed half-cent sales tax to replace Measure C.

Fresno City Council President Nelson Esparza is joined by Mayor Jerry Dyer, councilmember Mike Karbassi, City Manager Georgeanne White and other city leaders in announcing a proposed half-cent sales tax to replace Measure C.

Fresno City Mayor Jerry Dyer is joined by City Council President Nelson Esparza, councilmember Mike Karbassi, City Manager Georgeanne White and other city leaders in announcing a proposed half-cent sales tax to replace Measure C.

Fresno City Mayor Jerry Dyer is joined by City Council President Nelson Esparza, councilmember Mike Karbassi, City Manager Georgeanne White and other city leaders in announcing a proposed half-cent sales tax to replace Measure C.