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Ballotpedia:Analysis of the 2019 local ballot measures in California
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December 18, 2019
By The Ballot Measures Team
In 2019, Ballotpedia covered a total of 78 local ballot measures in California.
Quick stats
Measures by outcome
Among the 78 measures on ballots across California in 2019, 62 (79 percent) were approved, and 16 (21 percent) were defeated.
Measures by county in California
Out of California's 58 counties, 22 featured ballot measures in 2019. The total number of local ballot measures in each county throughout 2019 ranged from one measure in counties including Santa Clara, Siskiyou, and El Dorado counties to 21 measures in Los Angeles County. See the map below for more info.
Measures by election date in California
Following are all of the 2019 election dates on which local ballot measures were featured on the ballot in one or more counties. The majority of measures were on the ballot during the general election in November (45 measures).
February
March
April
May
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June
August
November
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Ballot measures by topic
Of the 78 measures on local ballots, 65 percent were tax measures, 17 percent were related to city governance, budget, and elections, and 15 percent related to property and housing. Other measures covered various topics. Read on for a more detailed breakdown of notable topics.
Housing
- See also: Local housing on the ballot
There were three housing-related local measures on California ballots in 2019. In June 2019, voters in St. Helena defeated Measure F, which would have authorized the city to implement a program known as a Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RSO) to limit rent increases for mobile home residents who sign a lease of 12 months or less.
In November, voters in San Francisco approved Measure A, San Francisco Bond Issue for Affordable Housing, and Measure E, San Francisco Reduced Zoning Restrictions for Housing and Educator Housing Projects. Measure A, which was approved with the necessary two-thirds supermajority vote, authorized the city to issue $600 million to fund housing projects for low-income, educator, and senior households. Measure E was also approved and amended the city's planning code to allow residential development for low-income and educator housing on publicly zoned districts and to expedite the review process for such projects.
Measures affecting large companies
Four measures were on local California ballots in 2019 that had provisions that would affect large companies.
- Proposition C, San Francisco Authorize and Regulate Sale of Electronic Cigarettes and Vapor Products Initiative, was designed to overturn the ban on electronic cigarettes that had not received FDA approval and establish other rules to regulate the sale and use of vaping products in the city. Juul Labs, which is headquartered in San Francisco and accounted for over 70 percent of the e-cigarette market in the United States in 2019, contributed over $15.5 million to the campaign in support of the measure. It announced it was withdrawing support for the measure a month prior to the election. Proposition C was defeated with 81 percent of the vote, thereby maintaining the ban on e-cigarettes.
- Proposition D, San Francisco Ride-Share Business Tax to Fund Muni, Pedestrian, and Bicycle Services and Infrastructure, was approved by voters in November and enacted a tax on ride-share companies, such as Uber and Lyft, at a rate of 1.5% of total fares on shared rides and rides in zero-emission vehicles and 3.25% of total fares on private rides, with revenue dedicated to improving and maintaining public transportation services and pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure. The tax went into effect January 1, 2020, and was designed to expire for electric vehicles in December 2024 and for all other vehicles in November 2045.
- A minimum wage measure in Los Angeles designed to increase the minimum wage for hospitality employees to $15 per hour and enact certain regulations regarding hospitality employees' working conditions, was approved in November.
- An advisory question in Huntington Park advising city officials to negotiate with Costco for a store location in the city was approved in March.
Competing measures
- See also: Competing ballot measures in California
Two local jurisdictions in California had competing measures on the ballot in 2019.
When two measures with conflicting provisions compete, only one can be approved by voters. It is also possible for both competing measures to be defeated. Competing measures may be placed on a ballot by local governments, such as city councils, or by citizens through the initiative process. In cases of competing measures, if both measures receive more than the required percentage of votes, the one with the largest number of "yes" votes supersedes the other.
Alameda
Measure A and Measure B were competing measures on the ballot for Alameda voters on April 9, 2019. Measure A, a city proposal, was designed to convert vacant federal buildings on a 3.65-acre McKay Avenue parcel into a wellness center providing senior assisted living and homelessness services. Measure B, a citizen initiative, was designed to designate the 3.65-acre parcel as open space. Measure A was approved, thereby authorizing the development of the parcel into a wellness center. Measure B was defeated 44.09% to 55.91%.
Signal Hill
Competing measures M and N were on the ballot for Signal Hill voters in Los Angeles County, California, on March 5, 2019. The measures asked voters whether the city should move municipal elections to the first Tuesday in March of even-numbered years or to the first Tuesday in November of even-numbered years. Measure N was approved, moving city elections to the first Tuesday in November of even-numbered years. Measure M received 57.12% approval, but received fewer yes votes than Measure N.
Taxes
Taxes made up 65 percent of the measures on local ballots in California in 2019. Each of the 51 local tax measures represented one of the following categories:
- Parcel taxes (30 measures)
- Sales tax (11 measures)
- Hotel taxes (5 measures)
- Marijuana taxes (3 measures)
- Business taxes (2 measures)
Parcel taxes
- See also: Parcel tax elections in California
Of the 78 tax measures in California in 2019, 30 were parcel tax measures. A parcel tax is a kind of property tax based on units of property rather than assessed value. Nearly one-third of all 2019 parcel tax measures were put on the ballot by school districts, while the rest were put on the ballot by various jurisdictions throughout the state.
Parcel taxes are all special taxes, meaning that they are designed to fund specific purposes. Special taxes proposed by local governments require a two-thirds (66.67%) vote for approval in California.
Sales taxes
Of the 51 tax measures in California in 2019, 11 were sales tax measures.
In 2019, the base sales tax rate in the state of California was 7.25 percent. Local jurisdictions in the state are permitted to implement additional sales taxes for either general purposes or specific uses. While general sales tax measures require a simple majority vote, sales tax measures for specific uses require a two-thirds (66.67%) vote.
All local sales tax measures in 2019 were general taxes. Ten of the general tax measures were approved, and one was defeated. Voters in Claremont defeated Measure CR that would have enacted a 0.75% sales tax for general usage, thereby increasing the city sales tax rate from 9.5% to 10.25%
Marijuana tax measures
- See also: Local marijuana tax on the ballot
There were three marijuana tax-related measures on California ballots in 2019. All three measures were approved. Measure Y in Los Angeles County, Measure A in Orange County, and Measure E in San Mateo County enacted various taxes on businesses that sell marijuana.
Every vote counts
This section of the reports highlights the measures that either passed or failed with the smallest margins. In 2019, four measures featured margins of less than 2 percentage points. All four were tax measures. Three were special parcel tax measures requiring a two-thirds (66.67%) vote for approval. One was a general sales tax measure requiring a simple majority (50% + 1 vote) to pass.
- Redwood City School District Measure H (November 2019) proposed an annual parcel tax of $149. Since the measure earmarked revenue for a specific purpose, it required a two-thirds (66.67%) vote. It was approved by 66.22% of voters, which was 0.45% (73 votes) short of the required percentage.- - Claremont Measure CR (November 2019) proposed a general services sales tax. It required a simple majority to pass. It was approved by 49.11% of voters, which was 0.89% (71 votes) short of the required percentage.
- San Francisco Proposition D (November 2019) proposed a tax on ride-share companies, such as Uber and Lyft, with revenue dedicated to improving and maintaining public transportation services and pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure. It required a two-thirds (66.67%) vote. It was approved by 67.65% of voters, which was 0.99% (1,976 votes) more than was required.- - Foresthill Fire Protection District Measure B (May 2019) proposed a fire services parcel tax. It required a two-thirds (66.67%) vote. It was approved by 68.32% of voters, which was 1.66% (42 votes) more than was required.
Comparing 2019 to prior years
In 2019, there were 78 local ballot measures in California on the ballot during nine different election dates.
- In 2017, there were 135 of local ballot measures 17 different election dates.
- Of those 135 measures, 64.4 percent were approved, while 35.6 percent were defeated.
- In 2015, there were 114 local ballot measures in California across 13 different election dates.
California features more local ballot measures in even-numbered years than in odd-numbered years. In 2018, there were 726 local ballot measures in California. In 2016, there were 832.
See also
- 2019 ballot measures
- Ballot measure readability scores, 2019
- Ballot measure signature costs, 2019
- Ballot measure campaign finance, 2019
- Ballot Measure Scorecard, 2019
- Ballotpedia's Tuesday Count for 2019
- List of ballot measure lawsuits in 2019
- 2019 ballot measure polls
- 2019 ballot measure media endorsements
- Hotel taxes in California
- Business taxes in California
- Utility taxes in California
- Sales tax in California
- Parcel tax elections in California
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