San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie declared victory Wednesday in pushing a ballot proposition across the finish line that will raise about $160 million a year for public transit through a progressive parcel tax.
Proposition H received strong voter support, with about 72.4% of voters backing the tax in unofficial results posted on election night. It needs a simple majority to pass.
While the majority of ballots were counted by the end of Tuesday, any ballots that were postmarked by 5 p.m. on Election Day will be counted if they are received by Nov. 10.
In a statement on Wednesday, Lurie celebrated the proposition’s passage and said the money needed to be spent wisely to help dig the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency out of a huge projected deficit in coming years.
“San Franciscans stood together to build a stronger Muni for all,” Lurie said. “But let me be clear — this is not about spending more money to get the same results. With this infusion of funding comes the responsibility to deliver a better transit system — more reliable, more efficient, safer, and worthy of the people who depend on it every single day. And that’s exactly what we are going to deliver with San Francisco’s first progressive parcel tax.”
The tax will be effective for 15 years starting in 2027 and will enact a property tax increase of about $179 a year on 95% of single-family houses in the city.
The tax goes up in tiers based on a property’s size and whether it is commercial or residential.
The highest annual tax increase will be $400,000 a year for larger non-residential parcels.
“… With this infusion of funding comes the responsibility to deliver a better transit system … And that’s exactly what we are going to deliver with San Francisco’s first progressive parcel tax.”
Mayor Daniel Lurie
Muni is facing projected budget deficits of more than $300 million a year for foreseeable budget years, which could balloon to nearly $400 million a year without further reductions or revenue.
The tax measure could be complemented by a Regional Transit Measure that also appears likely to pass based on initial results. That measure would bring in an estimated $980 million that would be divided among the five counties in the Bay Area Metropolitan Transportation Commission district, including about $155 million a year for Muni.
Lurie himself led a signature gathering event and campaigned for Proposition H, which had a broad coalition of backers from prominent local artificial intelligence companies to billionaire tech executives, labor unions, public transit advocacy groups, and elected officials at multiple levels of government.
The results must be certified by the city and county by Dec. 3 and by the California Secretary of State a week later.