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Bakersfield, California, Measure N, Sales Tax (November 2018)
| Measure N: Bakersfield Sales Tax |
|---|
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| The basics |
| Election date: |
| November 6, 2018 |
| Status: |
 Approved
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| Topic: |
| Local sales tax Expires in: No expiration |
| Related articles |
| Local sales tax on the ballot November 6, 2018 ballot measures in California Kern County, California ballot measures City tax on the ballot |
| See also |
| Bakersfield, California |
A sales tax was on the ballot for Bakersfield voters in Kern County, California, on November 6, 2018. It was approved.
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of authorizing the city to increase its sales tax by one percentage point, thereby increasing the total sales tax rate within the city from the statewide rate of 7.25 percent to 8.25 percent. |
| A no vote was a vote against authorizing the city to increase its sales tax by one percentage point, thereby leaving the total sales tax rate within the city at 7.25 percent. |
Election results
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Bakersfield Measure N |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
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45,835 | 50.05% | ||
| No | 45,738 | 49.95% | ||
Text of measure
Ballot question
The ballot question was as follows:[1]
| “ |
To prevent cuts/improve 911 emergency response, police/fire protection, anti-gang/drug units, neighborhood police patrols; rapid response to assaults, robberies, gang violence, home burglaries; crime prevention; address homelessness; retain, attract jobs/businesses; unrestricted general revenue purposes; shall the measure be adopted approving an ordinance establishing a one-cent sales tax providing $50,000,000 annually until ended by voters, requiring independent audits, citizens oversight, all funds for Bakersfield?[2] |
” |
Impartial analysis
The following impartial analysis of the measure was prepared by the office of the Bakersfield City Attorney:
| “ |
If approved by a majority of the voters, Measure N would enact an ordinance which would increase the sales tax in the City of Bakersfield by 1 percentage point from 7.25% to 8.25%. Stated another way, Measure N would increase the price of an item subject to sales tax in the City of Bakersfield by one cent for every one dollar of purchase. The tax would be levied on the same purchases as the existing sales tax and is anticipated to result in an additional $50,000,000 annually to the City of Bakersfield. Revenue received will help fund top priorities identified by the community, including but not limited to maintaining and improving public safety services, keeping public areas safe and clean, retaining and attracting jobs/businesses, and working with community partners to address homelessness. All of the proceeds of the sales tax increase proposed in Measure N would be locallycontrolled. None of the increased sales tax revenue would go to the State or County. If approved, Measure N would require the Bakersfield City Council to appoint an independentcitizen’s oversight committee. The committee, as outlined in the ordinance, is created “to review the expenditure of revenues generated by the tax imposed by this ordinance. The Committee shall advise City Council on goals and objectives associated with the revenues imposed by this ordinance.” The Measure also requires City staff to produce an annual report and to process an annual audit of the revenues generated by the additional tax revenue and to have both of these items reviewed by the oversight committee. Measure N is a “general” tax, which means the increased revenue is for unrestricted general revenue purposes. While Measure N was placed on the ballot by a 2/3 vote of the City Council and is considered a “transactions and use tax”, it is commonly referred to as a salestax and can only go into effect if it is also approved by a majority of City of Bakersfield voters in the November 2018 election. If approved, the tax increase would take effect on or about April 1, 2019 and the City would begin receiving revenues in June, 2019. If Measure N is approved, it would remain in effect until the voters decide to repeal or amend it. A “YES” vote is a vote to approve a 1% increase in sales tax in the City of Bakersfield. A “NO” vote is a vote against an increase in sales tax in the City of Bakersfield.[2] |
” |
| —Bakersfield City Attorney[3] | ||
Path to the ballot
This measure was put on the ballot through a vote of the governing officials of Bakersfield, California.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Kern County Elections, "2018 Measure Language," accessed October 2, 2018
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Voter's Edge, "Bakersfield Measure N," accessed October 9, 2018
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