Contra Costa County tax measure goes to the voters

MARTINEZ — A sales and use tax measure is heading to the Contra Costa County ballot in June, despite criticism that an overstated annual budget deficit was used to justify the request.

Concerned for the future of the county’s health system due to federal spending cuts by Republicans in Congress, supervisors voted 4-1 on Tuesday to ask voters to approve a five-year 0.625% general retail sales and use tax measure during the June 2 primary election.

If approved by a simple majority of voters, the measure would raise about $150 million annually in additional revenue. The funds would go into the general fund and could be legally spent on a variety of expenses.

County leadership, however, say they plan to use the money to offset increased costs of providing health care services, lost federal revenue and an $18 billion state budget deficit estimated for the 2026-27 fiscal cycle.

“We cannot wait. We don’t know what else may come down from our federal or state government,” Supervisor Shanelle Scales-Preston said.

Supervisor Candace Andersen was the only elected to vote against putting the measure before voters. She previously supported the tax but said she had a change of heart after learning some county campaign messaging had been asserting the health system faced an annual $307 million in funding reductions when in actuality that figure was cumulative through 2029.

The cumulative reductions are actually closer to about $500 million, with a deficit of about $1 billion by 2031, said Brian Buchanan, interim chief financial officer, during Tuesday’s meeting.

Still, campaigning with the incorrect information is “concerning,” Andersen said. She advocated for postponing the measure while the county conducted more outreach and research.

“It’s irresponsible to move forward with this today,” Andersen said. “It’s just basic, good government, crossing our T’s and dotting our I’s, before we put forward a tax measure.”

That error was pointed out by one of the measure’s staunchest critics, the Contra Costa Taxpayers Association, a local government spending and taxation watchdog group. The county already has Measure X, a half-cent sales tax passed in 2020 that draws in about $120 million each year to support a variety of services, the association noted.

“Taxpayers ought not to be funding a new $750 Million Contra Costa bonanza in answer to a $307 Million cumulative problem,” Contra Costa Taxpayers Association member Michael Arata said in an email Monday.

Other opponents who spoke during Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting said they worried the new taxes would weigh hard on fixed-income seniors, and argued the county should instead look at cutting spending.

Supervisor John Gioia alternatively argued that seniors would benefit from the tax measure because they would likely be the hardest hit by the spending cuts.

Supervisors and county officials broadly agreed what revenue came from the new tax would benefit all residents, regardless of whether they’re on Medi-Cal, California’s version of Medicaid which was cut by nearly $1 trillion over a 10-year period under the federal budget bill.

About 90,000 county residents could lose their health coverage, Contra Costa Health Director Dr. Grant Colfax said. That could lead to greater strain on emergency rooms and delayed care for those in need.

The proposed health care system budget deficit also does not include unfunded federal mandates that will be implemented in future years, including additional case renewals that will require specific eligibility workers, said Dr. Marla Stuart, Employment and Human Services Department director.

The county would need to nearly double its eligibility staff to meet demand at a cost of about $117 million, she said.

“This is profound and very risky,” Colfax said, noting other health care systems will also feel the increased burden.

A similar tax measure was passed in Santa Clara County in November that promises to generate $330 million annually to help fill an estimated $1 billion of lost federal revenue each year. A coalition in Los Angeles County called Restore Healthcare for Angelenos is also advocating for a tax measure to offset federal cuts, Contra Costa County supervisors noted.

Because the tax would push some cities over a local sales tax cap of 9.25%, the county will need state legislators to pass a bill allowing the tax measure to take effect, according to a staff report. El Cerrito and Pinole are currently the only cities with a sales tax over 10%, but Antioch, Concord, Martinez, Moraga, Orinda, Richmond, San Ramon and San Pablo would join them if the tax is approved.

Such a bill authored by State Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, is moving through the legislature currently and could be approved by the summer, Gioia has previously said.

Another half-cent sales tax measure meant to raise about $1 billion for transit agencies is also planned for the November ballot in Contra Costa, Alameda, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.