The Lafayette City Council voted to put a sales tax measure on the November ballot, asking voters to authorize a half-cent increase for every dollar spent for seven years to maintain the current level of city services.
The measure will require a simple majority of the vote to pass.
City Manager Niroop Srivatsa previously said that due to inflation, prices on everything from materials to insurance and labor have increased.
The city said in a statement Thursday that “the state continues to impose a number of unfunded mandates” and as a result, the city is facing a structural deficit of more than $2 million annually, beginning in fiscal year 2024-25.
If approved, the sales tax revenue would go directly into the city’s general fund, which funds city services and facilities, including maintaining public streets and storm drains, sustaining wildfire preparedness, keeping police staffing at the current level, service for seniors, maintaining city parks and open spaces, traffic safety improvements, and supporting community partners like the chamber of commerce and school district.
The sales tax increase would generate about $2.4 million annually, which projections say is enough to maintain the current level of city services.
Lafayette’s current sales tax rate is 8.75%. The measure placed on the ballot by the council at its July 22 meeting seeks to raise it to 9.25%, which the city said is equal with the rates in Pleasant Hill and Walnut Creek and lower than Orinda, Moraga, and Concord.
The new rate would go into effect April 1, 2025.
Lafayette’s Administrative Services Director Tracy Robinson said the increase would generate about $2.4 million annually, which projections say is enough to maintain the current level of service.
If the measure doesn’t pass, “the council will have to make difficult decisions about which programs and services to reduce or eliminate,” Robinson said.
More information about the Lafayette’s financial situation and the funding measure is available on the city’s website.