City of Hayward Sales Tax, Measure C (June 2014)

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A City of Hayward Sales Tax, Measure C ballot question was on the June 3, 2014 election ballot for voters in city of Hayward in Alameda County, California, where it was approved.

Measure C authorized the city of Hayword to increase the sales tax rate in the city by 0.5 percent for 20 years in order to fund:

• public safety services such as EMS, fire protection and police protection,
• the replacement of the city's library facilities,
• road maintenance and repair and
• other city services.

Election results

Measure C
Result		Votes	Percentage
a Yes		9,238	67.36%
No		4,477	32.64%

Election results from Alameda County Elections Office

Text of measure

Ballot question

The question on the ballot:

“

To restore and maintain Hayward city services and facilities, including firefighting/emergency medical services; improving police protection for neighborhoods; replacing the aging library with a 21st century facility including safe space for after-school homework and tutoring; repairing potholes and streets; updating aging neighborhood fire stations; and other city services; shall the City of Hayward increase the sales tax by ½ percent, for twenty years only, providing locally controlled funding that cannot be taken by the State? Yes No

”

Full text

The full text of the ordinance enacted by Measure C is available here.

Yes on C campaign logo

Support

Supporters

The "Yes on C" campaign was called Protect Hayward's Future.

The following individuals signed the official arguments in favor of Measure C:

• Charles C. Plummer, Sheriff Emeritus and Hayward resident
• Judy Harrison, president of Friends of the Hayward Public Library and 31-year Hayward School librarian
• Robert Sakai, attorney and 60-year Hayward resident
• Doris J. Rodriques, 55-year resident and retired City Council Member
• Elaine J. Sunday, president of Hayward Neighborhood Alert and long-time Hayward resident

Arguments in favor

The Protect Hayward's Future website featured the following statement in favor of Measure C:

“	The City of Hayward has worked hard in recent years to be fiscally responsible while maintaining essential city services. But many city facilities have deteriorated after decades of constant use. The recent Great Recession has made it impossible to fund needed repairs or replace aging facilities while still maintaining the city services we need.	”
—Protect Hayward's Future,

Official arguments

The following was submitted as the official argument in favor of Measure C:

“	VOTE YES on Measure C to protect what we all want for Hayward: safe neighborhoods, help in an emergency, decent roads, modern learning facilities, economic prosperity, improved property values, and a VIBRANT future for our city. This is the goal of Measure C. The City of Hayward has worked hard in recent years to be fiscally responsible while maintaining essential city services. But many city facilities have deteriorated after decades of constant use. The recent Great Recession has made it impossible to fund needed repairs or replace aging facilities while still maintaining the city services we need. Despite these challenges, good things are happening in Hayward. Measure C will continue the progress by authorizing a ½ cent sales tax to fund important city services and needed facilities, such as: Providing firefighting and emergency medical response services Improving police protection for safer neighborhoods Restoring funding for maintenance, including pothole and street repairs Upgrading aging fire stations and replacing Hayward’s obsolete fire training facility Replacing the Hayward Main Library with a 21st Century Library and Learning Center, including space for after-school and early childhood education programs ALL Measure C funds (100%) will stay locally controlled IN Hayward – FOR Hayward. By law, the State CANNOT take this funding away. Basic necessities like groceries and prescription medications WON’T be taxed. Visitors to Hayward will pay their fair share, so residents won’t shoulder the entire cost. Measure C lasts 20 years ONLY. It cannot be extended without a new vote. Measure C is a smart investment. The longer we wait, the more expensive it will be. Please join firefighters, police officers, seniors, parents, neighborhood, civic and business leaders and residents from every Hayward neighborhood in taking this positive step to keep our community moving forward.	”
—Charles C. Plummer, Judy Harrison, Robert Sakai, Doris J. Rodriques and Elaine J. Sunday,

Opposition

Opponents

Hey Hayward, a community blog and commentary website, opposed Measure C.

Lawrence M. Johmann, Hayward resident, property owner and businessman, submitted and signed the official arguments in opposition to Measure C.

Hey Hayward campaign logo

Arguments against

Hey Hayward proposed that the tax is unnecessary and that one of the largest expenditures of proposed revenue, the construction of a new city library facility, is foolishly exorbitant. The opposition campaign referred to the reported $60 million dollar cost of construction and $30 million financing charge for the construction loans, pointing out that this cost amounts to $600 for every man, woman and child in Hayward.

Opponents also suggested that there was wasted space in the city hall that could accommodate some of the library space needs, such as internet access terminals. Moreover, critics argue that the proposed location of the new library is very close to a fault line, putting the proposed $90 million dollar investment at risk.

The Hey Hayward blog also urged the city voters to consider that, instead of building an all new library, the Hayward library system could use the funds it already has to renovate the existing facilities. Additionally, opponents proposed that the library system should team up with the library system of a nearby city or school district or with the county library district to share costs and resources. The Hey Hayward blog concluded by saying, "The fact is we can do a lot with what we have and with the partnerships we could form. We do not need a $90-million library, and we definitely don't need to be burdened with more unnecessary taxes."

Official arguments

The following was submitted as the official argument against Measure C:

“	Why does the City believe it’s entitled to greater relief from the effects of the recession and future inflationary costs than its residents and businesses? Why does the City contend that it has over half-a-billion dollars in unmet capital needs, yet provides no reference to any document supporting this incredible claim? Why does the City’s Capital Improvement Program list unfunded capital projects valued at $325M of which more than half this amount can be attributed to Caltrans interchange projects traditionally funded by federal, state, and regional sources? Why is the City proposing a $60M library that is 50-percent more costly than even the most expensive new Bay Area library built within the past decade? How will the City afford to stock, staff, and otherwise operate this proposed three story facility that would be more than twice the size of the existing? Why does the City believe that it’s managing its finances responsibly when the 20-highest compensated city employees in 2012 each received a quarter-of-a-million dollars or more in salary and benefits? Or when the top six received more than $300,000 in compensation—nearly six times Hayward’s median household income? Why hasn’t the city’s existing supplemental taxes (the emergency facilities tax and the 5.5- percent utility tax) accomplished what they were intended to do? Why is the City not concerned by the burden that this unprecedented combination of taxes will have on Hayward’s residents and businesses? Why is the City not concerned that this measure in combination with the possible augmentation of the county transportation sales tax will set Hayward’s sales tax rate at an even 10-percent? Why does the City believe that its residents and businesses are an endless source of revenue? Why?	”
—Lawrence M. Johmann, Hayward resident, property owner and businessman,

See also

• Local sales tax on the ballot
• Alameda County, California ballot measures
• June 3, 2014 ballot measures in California

External links

Suggest a link

Basic info

• Alameda County Elections Department website

Support

• Protect Hayward's Future website," accessed April 15, 2014

Opposition

• Hey Hayward website," accessed April 15, 2014