Gross sales tax for San Francisco Bay Space transit heads to poll

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into regulation a invoice that locations a gross sales tax measure, thought-about important for struggling San Francisco Bay Space transit suppliers, on subsequent yr’s poll.

Senate Invoice 63, authored by Sens. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, and Jesse Arreguin, D- Berkeley, would enhance funding for native transit techniques like San Francisco Bay Space Fast Transit which are going through substantial cuts amid struggling ridership restoration post-pandemic.

It locations a 14-year regional transportation gross sales tax earlier than voters in 5 counties subsequent November. The measure would levy a half-cent gross sales tax in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties and a one-cent gross sales tax in San Francisco. It is anticipated to generate practically $1 billion yearly.

As a former San Francisco supervisor and mayor, Newsom mentioned in his signing assertion he understands how difficult it may be to handle native transit techniques, however warned that the general public’s willingness to assist repeated tax will increase can’t be assumed.

The transit techniques “bear the accountability of displaying how further revenues, if accepted by voters, will produce tangible outcomes and measurable outcomes,” Newsom mentioned.

The regulation permits the measure to be positioned on the poll both by motion by a newly-formed Public Transit Income Measure District ruled by the identical board because the Metropolitan Transportation Fee or by way of a citizen’s initiative. Proponents are pursuing a voter initiative, which might solely want a easy majority to go versus the two-thirds tremendous majority required within the formation of the district.

Roughly 60% of cash from the gross sales tax can be devoted to the San Francisco Bay Space Fast Transit District, the San Francisco Municipal Railway, the Caltrain commuter rail service and the AC Transit bus service within the East Bay. All have threatened steep cuts with out further funding and face annual deficits of greater than $800 million yearly beginning in fiscal 2027-28, in line with an impartial evaluation, MTC mentioned.

About one-third of the income would go to the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, San Mateo County Transit District, the Alameda County Transportation Fee and the Contra Costa Transportation Authority or for transit capital, operations or highway paving initiatives on roads with common bus service.

BART, a 131-mile heavy-rail transit system connecting San Francisco to east and south bay cities, contemplated a proposal earlier within the yr that may have decreased the variety of trains from 4,200 to 500 every week. BART has taken different steps like freezing or eliminating 45 open positions, shortening trains and plans a 6.2% fare enhance in January.

“The BART Board of Administrators supported SB 63, as a result of it is going to cowl a good portion of BART’s working deficit and permit us to take care of present service ranges and enhance the rider expertise,” the company mentioned in a press release. “BART will proceed to establish further value financial savings and efficiencies to deal with our deficit, and we welcome the improved accountability measures and monetary effectivity evaluate included in SB63.”

The regulation requires the district set up an impartial oversight committee to make sure expenditures are in line with statute. BART, Muni, Caltrain and AC Transit are additionally required to endure a two-phase impartial third-party monetary effectivity evaluate. 

Beneficiaries of the sale tax additionally should keep present ranges of operations funding to make sure the measure dietary supplements, slightly than replaces, present operations assist.