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City of Alameda Sales Tax Increase, Measure C (June 2012)
A City of Alameda Sales Tax Increase was on the June 5, 2012 ballot for voters in the City of Alameda in Alameda County.[1]
This measure was defeated; if it had been approved it would have levied a half-cent sales tax for 30 years. This would have made the total sales tax in the city 9.25%. The revenue raised from the tax would have been used to fund library improvements, replace police and fire vehicles and build a new emergency center.
A two-thirds (66.67%) vote was required for approval.
Election results
| City of Alameda Sales Tax Increase | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
 No | 8,426 | 49.44% | ||
| Yes | 8,616 | 50.56% | ||
- These results are from the Alameda County Registrar of Voters and are reported as of June 28, 2012.
Opposition
Measure C was opposed by a group called "Milking Alameda." The group's motto was "Squeezing Alameda Taxpayers Dry, Half a Cent at a Time."
Measure C was also opposed by the editorial board of the East Bay Express. They said, "Sales taxes are deeply unfair; they impact low-income families the hardest, because low-income residents tend to spend a much higher percentage of their earnings on items that are subject to sales taxes. In fact, when including sales taxes, low-income earners pay the highest effective tax rate in California. Sales taxes also unfairly impact small retailers. Measure C would give Alameda the highest sales-tax rate in the county — tied with Union City at 9.25 percent. We think that's far too high. Although there's no doubt that Measure C would finance some worthy construction projects in the city, we think that city leaders should work harder to find better ways to finance them."[2]
Ballot text
The question on the ballot:
| MEASURE C: "To maintain neighborhood crime patrols, fire protection and 911 emergency response; improve earthquake preparedness; replace an unsafe fire station; establish a citywide Emergency Operations Center, a joint police/ fire training facility, library, cultural and recreational facilities; replace outdated police/ fire vehicles and equipment; and for other capital equipment and facilities, shall the City of Alameda enact a one-half cent sales tax, with all revenue staying in the City, mandatory annual audits and public expenditure reports?"[3] |
Path to the ballot
The Alameda City Council voted to put it on the ballot[4] at a March 7th, 2012, special city council meeting.[5]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Mercury News, "East Bay races and measures head to June 5 ballot," March 9, 2012
- ↑ East Bay Express, "Guillen, Quirk, and Wiener, and Yes on B, 28, and 29," May 16, 2012
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Alameda County Registrar of Voters,
- ↑ Alameda Journal, "Alameda City Council asks voters to approve sales tax increase" March 9, 2012
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This article about a local California ballot measure is a sprout. |
