PD Editorial: An abundance of revenue measures on the fall ballot

No one debates the need that many public agencies, including schools, have for seeking additional revenue. But how much is too much?

At this point, Sonoma County voters will find the following on the Nov. 4 ballot:

A countywide quarter-cent sales tax measure, raising $20 million a year to be divided among the county and cities for road repair and public transit.

A $410 million Santa Rosa Junior College bond measure for facility, classroom and technology upgrades.

Two separate bond measures for Santa Rosa City Schools totaling $229 million for needed facility upgrades and technology.

A Santa Rosa measure that would extend the city’s existing utility tax to cover cellphones at a rate of 4.5 percent, generating an estimated $11.9 million per year for the general fund.

A one-cent sales tax increase in Petaluma that would raise roughly $10 million a year to pay for road and traffic improvements, flood protection and the Rainier Avenue cross-town connector.

A one-eighth of a cent countywide sales tax that would generate an estimated $10 million a year for restoring hours at the county’s 13 library branches, upgrade facilities and expand library services.

A 3 percent utility tax in Cloverdale that would raise approximately $375,000 a year for the general fund.

A 3.75 percent utility tax in Sebastopol that replaces a 4 percent tax on energy service that expires Jan. 1.

With the deadline to place measures on the fall ballot six days away, it’s possible more measures could be in the works.

We’ll save our comments on the pros and cons of these measures for the coming weeks when we will offer our own recommendations. For now, we simply raise concern about the compounding effects of all these measures and what role that will play in determining the outcomes.

Each measure has merit in its own way. Some have been placed on the ballot based on polling results that show a strongly likelihood of public support. But their backers should be concerned, as Supervisor Efren Carrillo observed on Tuesday, that the county could be headed for “voter burnout on tax measures.”

At the same time, if voters are willing to support these measures, it would mean a major infusion in public investment in schools, roads and government programs - services that have been woefully underfunded in recent years.

This was a topic of conversation this past week when The Press Democrat Editorial Board met with members of the Santa Rosa school board and school superintendent to discuss the district’s $229 million bond measure.

While school board members say they don’t plan to campaign against any single measure, they have confidence that their own revenue proposal stands on its merits. Said School Board member Bill Carle, “We think probably the most important thing a community does is educate its youth.”

It’s hard to disagree with that. But putting a combined $639 million in bonds before local voters may test that community resolve, to say nothing of tax measures that will push the county’s sales tax rate above the state-mandated limit of?9.5 percent. The county would need help from the state Legislature to exceed that cap.

Meanwhile, not all entities are planning to play nice this election. Petaluma has already approved a “resolution of nonsupport” for the county’s road repair tax for fear it could undermine support for the city’s measure. A Petaluma poll showed that only 8.8 percent of Petaluma residents would support both a county roads tax and a city tax measure on the same ballot.

Ultimately, voters will have the final say on which, if any or all, of these measures take priority. Either way, voters have no excuse for sitting out this election as many did in the June primary. Whether these measures pass or they fail, they will come at a cost. Residents might as well ensure they have a say on what that will be. The final day to register to vote is Oct. 20.