No on Measure B: Vote against ‘trickle down taxonomics’

Measure B on the March 2 ballot raises taxes to pay for schools and ambulances, but like most ballot measures it’s about more than just those things.

As a restaurant owner in Guerneville since 2011, I’ve managed to weather the low season and keep my business open in a tourist town. Over the past few years, my small business neighbors and I have learned a lot about staying afloat in the wake of fires, a devastating flood and now a pandemic. It’s been a struggle.

We were excited for 2021 to come and usher in a new chapter. However, and as usual, the lower Russian River is being slapped with another challenge — Measure B. Despite the beauty of the river, redwoods and coast, and the almost 50% of transient occupancy taxes that we already contribute to the county every year, the supervisors want to add to the wounds we've endured with a 4 percentage point increase of this tax. This will take it from 12% to 16%, the second highest in California.

The goal is to support sustainable paramedic emergency medical and rescue services provided by local fire agencies and to support west county schools and education, raising approximately $2.7 million annually, with all funds exclusively used for west county, effective until amended or repealed. An important and noble cause.

Let me be clear: I am not against supporting emergency services and local schools. Both of these are of the utmost importance. My concern is for the business community the supervisors have chosen to levy. There must be another answer to this challenge.

In a recent conversation with Supervisor Lynda Hopkins on why this tax was being levied on the hospitality industry, already crippled by natural disasters and a pandemic that has no end in sight, she had this to say:

“TOT doesn’t burden hotel owners, and there is zero evidence that suggests that increasing TOT hurts hotel owners. It’s a fee that is passed on to the customer. Customers have not demonstrated price sensitivity to TOT increases. Millions of TOT dollars a year pour into advertising and marketing to further promote tourism … very little goes back to offset the impacts of tourism on our communities.”

I disagree with Hopkins on her response and the effect, which I call trickle down taxonomics. Measure B would not only hurt hotels that rely on occupancy, it would also hit “feeder businesses” that need heads in beds to stay alive. The Sonoma County Taxpayers Association also presented this valid argument:

“In its current form, Measure B diverts half of its proceeds away from fire and paramedic services while funneling them instead to the high school district. The declining enrollment problem doesn’t go away and the consolidation decision is kicked down the road a couple years. Meanwhile, millions of tax dollars will be wasted propping up the struggling school district. It’s your money.”

For those of you — parents and concerned citizens — reading this right now and thinking you want to support this tax, take these two points into consideration.

Over the past 10 years, as new businesses have opened they've helped to drive interest in this area and increase our property values. When businesses close, property values decline. A dedicated group of entrepreneurs worked hard to help breathe life into this area after the last recession, and we want to continue to encourage businesses to open in the Lower Russian River. This tax will absolutely affect current and future business prospects — and not in a good way.

Additionally, many of the businesses in the area employ people who live here. This includes our kids. As business owners, my partners and I have had the pleasure of hiring young adults in Guerneville and beyond. It's been a pleasure to watch them learn, grow and take responsibility as they work outside of school and home.

One of our former employees went off to Yale Law School, another moved on to work in health care, and soon one of our “kids” will head off to college. Not only do we feel as though we’ve played a role in their personal and professional development, we want to ensure that we can continue to provide a space for kids to do just that.

It is not like me to come to the table with problems without solutions. But the burden of an alternative lies in the hands of the people who created Measure B to begin with.

The supervisors were elected to run this county and consider all of the neighbors and people who contribute to the bucket of tax revenue. While we are on board for saving a school and ensuring public safety, the hospitality industry and the businesses — and many others who are struggling now — should not have to absorb this challenge.

I hope you will join me in voting this measure down and sending a clear message that a community already faced with challenges doesn’t need yet another one.

Michael Volpatt owns Big Bottom Market in Guerneville.

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