Even Californians Are Saying No to New Taxes

Across the state, county and city ballot measures raising levies are trailing or have been defeated

By Allysia Finley.  Excerpts:

"the city (LA) routinely deploys firefighting crews to respond to 911 medical calls that could be handled by emergency medical technicians at much lower cost."

"In Contra Costa County . . . employee salaries and benefits have risen 47% since 2020."

"Even San Francisco liberals rejected a union-backed gross-receipts tax hike on large companies with more than $1 billion in sales in the city."

"Unions dressed up their measure as an “Overpaid CEO tax” because it would hit companies whose highest-paid executive makes more than 100 times its median employee’s pay. This political sales job worked in 2020, when two-thirds of San Francisco voters approved a similar tax. But voters weren’t about to get swindled again."

"Following the 2020 tax hike, businesses reduced their workforces in the city to minimize their tax liability. Business groups championed a 2024 ballot measure to slash the tax, which passed."