BY ADRIANA HERNANDEZ
Daily Post Staff Writer
San Carlos officials are looking at placing a half-cent sales tax measure on the November ballot to help pay for its plans for downtown and cover a possible budget shortfall. If voters reject the tax increase, one of the things the city may cut is funding for the Sheriff’s Office.
The city may have a budget deficit estimated between $500,000 to $1 million annually over the next 10 years, and a tax measure would help, Administrative Services Director Rebecca Mendenhall told the city’s planning commission on Monday.
If a half-cent sales tax gets approved, it will generate $6 million to support city services such as downtown improvement, road maintenance, parks and public safety for 14 years, Mendenhall said.
“Our costs are exceeding our revenues,” Mendenhall said. If the city decides not to place the measure on the ballot, it will have to look at reducing services, such as its police services.
San Carlos is one of the cities in the county that contracts the sheriff’s office for police services, and it has saved them $2 million yearly, according to Mendenhall.
The city gets revenue from sales taxes, but it receives only 11 cents of each dollar, while the rest goes to the state, county and transit agencies, Mendenhall said. The city also gets property taxes, under which it receives about 13 cents of every dollar collected, with the rest going to schools, Mendenhall said.
Spending
The proposed tax will help the city with projects such as the bicyclist bridge at Highway 101, which has increased in cost from $62 million to $112 million, Mendenhall said.
The city is looking to make improvements after Andrea Vallebueno, 31, of Palo Alto, died after colliding with a car on Holly Street near the Highway 101 overpass on Nov. 16, 2024.
The tax measure would just add a few pennies per purchase, Mendenhall said. For example, with a $10 purchase, the tax would add five cents, she said. The tax would not be added to groceries, medicine, diapers or feminine hygiene products, according to Mendenhall.
65% support
A survey the city conducted in October showed that 65% of residents would support a local sales tax to help the city, according to Mendenhall.
Commissioner Twisha Anand supported the tax, but the city needs to be mindful of how it can affect small businesses, Anand said.
The city must take initiative now before any other agency decides to also place a sales tax measure on the ballot because of the county’s cap of 9.875%, Mendenhall said.
Facing BART tax
The proposed tax would be on the same ballot as the bailout half-cent sales tax measure for public transit in the Bay Area, such as BART, Muni and Caltrain, Mendenhall said. But the transit tax doesn’t count for the county’s cap, according to Mendenhall.
If both taxes pass, that will raise San Carlos’ sales tax to 10.37%, among the highest in the Bay Area.
Council previously supported the idea of the tax to help fund projects, such as turning the 700 block of Laurel Street into a promenade.
Councilwoman claims community is demanding spending
“Our community wants a lot of things. We keep hearing a lot of big projects ahead of us, and we do need to prepare and think ahead to support all of these community requests,” Councilwoman Sara McDowell said at a Nov. 10 meeting.
Council will hear the proposed tax measure on June 22 to decide whether to place it on the ballot, according to Mendenhall.
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