After Oakland voters struck down a proposed parcel tax known as Measure E in last week’s election, one of the measure’s advocate groups expressed its disappointment and is now focusing on what they can do better in the future.
Measure E was a proposed $192 annual parcel tax increase on homes in the city to fund emergency services, crime prevention and address illegal dumping, among other things. The measure required a simple majority vote to pass.
The latest voting results shared by Alameda County have it sitting at 45.72% approval, well below the simple majority threshold needed to pass.
East Bay Action, an advocacy group that was a strong supporter for Measure E, noted in a statement that their determination to fight for working class families in Oakland remains unchanged, while highlighting how this vote may affect Oakland’s residents.
“Without additional resources, Oakland now faces difficult decisions that could result in deeper cuts to programs and services working-class families rely on every day,” said Saabir Lockett, the deputy director of East Bay Action.
Focus on improved messaging
Reflecting on the measure’s defeat, Lockett said that organizations like East Bay Action need to do a better job of countering what he perceived as the misinformation put out by opposition groups such as stating that the increasing taxes “wouldn’t do anything” for public safety. Lockett noted that more political education and engagement is needed to get their message across.
“One of the best things that the opposition, any opposition can do is muddle the message, right?” Lockett said. “Measure E was a public safety measure that filled the gap of money that is already being used, it was going to create a larger revenue stream to allow us to hire more city workers.”
In her first budget proposal released on May 15, Oakland’s Mayor Barbara Lee outlined how the city planned to spend revenue from Measure E to “enhance public safety and clean streets,” by increasing or maintaining staffing levels across the fire and police departments, among other things. Lee noted how critical it was for the city to identify additional revenue sources to deliver on the city services Oaklanders expect.
Lockett added that despite the loss, the city still has progressive leaders like Lee, who he says is thoughtful on the impacts of policy and who has done a great job at balancing the budget and finding other revenue streams to maintain current staffing levels.