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SLO City Council votes in favor of sales tax increase

July 22, 2020

Following the lead of other cities in the county, the San Luis Obispo City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to place a 1 percent sales tax increase initiative on the November ballot.

If passed by a a majority of voters, the sales tax rate in San Luis Obispo would indefinitely rise from 7.75 percent to 8.75 percent. The initiative would eliminate the sunset clause on the city’s existing half percent sales tax, which is due for renewal in 2023, and set the city sales tax rate at 1.5 percent until it is potentially changed by voters in the future.

San Luis Obispo is facing an $8.6 million budget shortfall in the current fiscal year. The city’s existing half percent sales tax combined with a 1 percent increase would generate approximately $21.6 million annually, according to a city staff report.

Presently, all seven cities in SLO County have sales tax rates of 7.75 percent. Each of the seven cities have adopted their own half percent sales tax in the past.

In addition to San Luis Obispo, the city councils of Atascadero, Grover Beach, Morro Bay and Paso Robles voted to place 1 percent sales tax increase measures on the November ballot. The Arroyo Grande City Council voted last week against raising sales tax via a 2020 ballot measure.


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Take a college educated Staff, a Council of stipend subordinates and this is what you get from their enlightened process, fleece the Sheeple again.


24

I was already 80% online, might as well go to 100%. Sorry local businesses.


15

Seeing decreased revenue, JUST RAISE TAXES… it requires no mental energy, just takes away from the citizens and requires the least governance effort. So predictable for these SLO-types. Cutting spending and waste never is an initial response. The people of SLO seem to never learn at election time. At the helm of this sad place are cult-like progressives. When will the madness end?


38

Great. Let’s increase our taxes to fund police overtime to patrol a steady drumbeat of riots sanctioned by our Mayor and Council, to build more bike paths on our narrow residential streets in our neighborhoods, and to pay for increased salaries to the City Council for spreading all this “joy” they’re ramming down our throats. Instead of continuing to feed this beast we need to starve this beast! Just say no to more taxes…


38

A protest isnt a riot, and you are loosely throwing a word around and ignoring why there are national protests, may I ask you as to why you think the nation is protesting, and wants to destroy the foundation it sits upon, and to educate people like you in a facade of what Babylon is? San Luis and the central coast have roots of racism and segregation, and guess what Keith, its still alive and well sadly. Asians were chased out of Slo many years ago, and Atascadero segregated Black Americans also And racism is still here.


-19

So now all cities in SLO (except AG) want more money from their residents or bad things will happen and we residents will be left to fend for ourselves. Woe be unto us.


As has been stated before, but needs to be said again :


As any hog farmer will tell you – You can not get hogs to stop eating as long as someone keeps filling the trough. Our job is to stop filling the trough. Vote NO on any tax increases. Force the hogs to find food someplace else.


71

Cities like Paso Robles, Atascadero, and San Luis Obispo are shopping hubs for those people that live in the county outside of the cities. The county residents spend a lot of money at the businesses in these cities but do not get to vote on a sales tax increase. A city wide property tax increase makes more sense as the city residents are the ones that benefit from city services but that won’t happen! Better to fleece as many people as you can! Looks like online shopping is going to get more business!


15

I live one mile outside the SL0 city limts,which is still considered San Luis Obispo but I cannot vote on anything that concerns the city of SLO but that is where I work and shop,it is frustrating that I don’t have a voice in this matter.Everyone is having a tough time right now and the City should be thinking of the residents instead of themselves for once.


31

A city wide property tax increase would disproportionately affect homeowners, while leaving renters, tourists, and other visitors mostly unaffected. Renters, tourists, and yes even out of town shoppers like you benefit from city infrastructure and other services. Home ownership in SLO city is already expensive enough! Let’s not make it even worse by piling on more property taxes.


4

Businesses are failing, City is technically insolvent, owes over $165,000,000 to CalPERS, but is spending over $100,000 on a diversity committee. Let’s not cut spending or staffing, it’s so much better just to tax the residents and tourists than address the long term problem of living beyond our means.


72

CALPERS has remained quite solvent during the recent crisis. In fact, the investor had a nearly 5% return through June.


A slight 1% tax increase will not substantially affect anyone’s lifestyle in SLO. But, I do understand the knee-jerk reaction from residents who feel squeezed despite the fact that their net worth has never been higher if they own property.


https://www.calpers.ca.gov/page/newsroom/calpers-news/2020/calpers-preliminary-investment-return-2019-20


-60

You said it, businesses are failing. So how do you raise any money by sales tax when you can’t or are not allowed to do commerce? Suppose they do something to encourage businesses to stay open or move here and get customers to buy something that will even generate some sales tax revenue? Suppose they go to New York City and tell those businesses that are leaving due to high taxes there to come here and bring your employees and your purchasing power and have a much lower tax base? Suppose we make sure that we have all the Cal Poly students back in the fall? Suppose we used some imagination in handling this crisis rather demand more money from people who are already on hard times? Personally I think all the money that is going to Sacramento right now should stay in the counties until things get back to normal. The governor is the one creating all of these uncertain economic conditions, making it difficult for business people and yet he is immune to the consequences of all this disruption. The founding fathers were afraid of that type of government and rightfully so.


26

They could put a 10% sales tax increase on the ballot and the people in SLO would vote for it.


20

Or 100%. Indeed, I hear people complaining our taxes are too low. Really, I do. It’s nuts what some people say. But no matter how high taxes go, we’ll not benefit from anything this city spends its loot on.


11

” the sales tax rate in San Luis Obispo would indefinitely rise from 7.75 percent to 8.75 ” indefinite = permanent in the politispeak dictionary


64

Not quite permanent – I’d imagine in a couple years, they’ll vote on another 0.25% increase for some other measure, like to add electric vehicle charging stations or more bike lanes or something.


56

…or to pay for a raise for Heidi so she can afford rent; couch surfing is hard for a socially conscious mayor. You have to remember whose pad you are crashing at after a long night standing in front of the jail to cheer on criminals..


33
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