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Berkeley, California, Business License Tax, Measure U1 (November 2016)
| Measure U1: Berkeley Business License Tax |
|---|
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| The basics |
| Election date: |
| November 8, 2016 |
| Status: |
 Approved
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| Topic: |
| Local business tax Expires in: Never |
| Related articles |
| Local business tax on the ballot November 8, 2016 ballot measures in California Alameda County, California ballot measures City tax on the ballot |
| See also |
| Berkeley, California |
A business tax measure was on the ballot for Berkeley voters in Alameda County, California, on November 8, 2016. It was approved.
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of increasing gross receipts tax for owners of five or more residential rental units from 1.081 percent to 2.880 percent, thereby competing with measure Measure DD. |
| A no vote was a vote against increasing gross receipts tax for owners of five or more residential rental units from 1.081 percent to 2.880 percent. |
Election results
| Measure U1 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
| Yes | 43,014 | 74.93% | ||
| No | 14,389 | 25.07% | ||
- Election results from Alameda County Registrar of Voters
Text of measure
Ballot question
The following question appeared on the ballot:[1]
| “ |
Shall an ordinance permanently increasing the gross receipts tax on owners of five or more residential rental units be increased from 1.081% to 2.880%, prohibiting landlords from passing the tax on to sitting tenants, and directing the Housing Advisory Commission to make recommendations on funding and programs to increase affordable housing and protect Berkeley residents from homelessness, be adopted? Financial Implications: This amendment is estimated to raise approximately $3,900,000 annually, increasing with rents. [2] |
” |
Impartial analysis
The following impartial analysis of the measure was prepared by the office of the Berkeley City Attorney:
| “ | This measure was placed on the ballot by the City Council.
This measure amends the City’s business license tax ordinance (Berkeley Municipal Code Chapter 9.04) to permanently increase the gross receipts tax on owners of five or more residential rental units from 1.081% to 2.880%. Owners of five or more units would include persons with indirect interests in five or more units, such as through LLCs or partnerships. Tax proceeds would be placed in the City’s general fund and could be used for any governmental purpose. The tax increase would not apply to
affordable housing;
agreements with public agencies, at rental rates that are affordable to households earning no more than 80% of AMI and whose tenants must be income-qualified;
prior to January 1, 1999; and
vouchers or Shelter + Care) from the Berkeley Housing Authority or City of Berkeley. In addition, all new units would be exempt from the increased tax for the first 12 years after the issuance of a certificate of occupancy. Property owners would be able to seek 1-year hardship exemptions due to exceptional circumstances, which may be approved by the City Manager for good cause. The City Council could reduce the tax increase, and may terminate any such reductions, without further voter approval. The measure would prohibit landlords from passing the tax on to sitting tenants, even if otherwise permitted by law. The measure would direct the Housing Advisory Commission to make recommendations on funding and programs to increase affordable housing and protect Berkeley residents from homelessness, either annually or biannually, as the Commission deems appropriate in light of the City’s budget cycle and other relevant funding cycles. The Commission’s recommendations would be promptly published on the City’s web site and transmitted to the City Council. The City would be required to consider the Commission's recommendations and annually inform the Commission as to the extent to which it has implemented the recommendations. The measure provides that in the event any other measure relating to taxation of income from rental units passes, the measures shall be deemed to be in conflict, and the measure with the most votes will prevail over the other measure. Financial Implications The tax increase is expected to raise approximately $2.98 to $3.45 million annually, increasing with rents and each year as rents from buildings that become more than 12 years old become taxable. Additional costs for administration and collection could be as much as $350,000.[2] |
” |
| —Berkeley City Attorney[3] | ||
Full text
The full text of the measure is available here.
Path to the ballot
This measure was put on the ballot through a vote of the governing officials of Berkeley, California.
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Berkeley Local business tax. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Alameda County, "November 8, 2016 General Election Local Measures," accessed October 12, 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Alameda County, "Measure U1," accessed October 28, 2016
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