With 11 days left until California’s primary election day on June 2nd, much attention is focused not only on the gubernatorial race but also on the 91 hidden tax proposals on ballots across the state that are closely related to people’s daily lives. If these proposals pass, they are expected to raise the cost of living for residents.
Los Angeles County, which represents over a quarter of the state’s voters, has the highest number of proposals at 22, followed by Marin County with 11 proposals. The majority of proposals fall under categories such as increasing sales taxes, school district taxes, and school district bond measures.
According to the California reform organization’s voter guide for all 58 counties, 31 counties have no tax increase proposals, while the remaining 27 counties have various tax measures.
“Politicians hide tax increase plans behind vague language, making it difficult for voters to understand what they are approving.” Carl DeMaio, chairman of Reform California and State Assembly Member for the 75th District, criticized. These measures are packaged as funding for public safety, infrastructure, or community investment projects, sometimes bundled with popular public service projects, making it harder for voters to discern.
Most tax increase proposals originate from cities, with 11 counties having 1 measure each, 5 counties having 2 measures, 8 counties having 3-5 measures, Alameda County with 6 measures, Contra Costa County with 8 measures, Marin County with 11 measures, and Los Angeles County with as many as 22 measures.
Overall, measures to raise sales taxes are the most common, followed by school district taxes and school district bond measures – with 6 in LA County, 6 in Marin County, and 5 in Contra Costa County. Governor Newsom allocated $122.5 billion for K-14 education in the state budget proposal for 2026, with an average of $27,418 per student.
California’s Proposition 98 (1988) guarantees K-14 students receive 40% of the state’s general funds annually and adjusts minimum funding levels based on attendance rates and changes in living costs from the previous year. However, the abundance of bond funding and tax increase measures seems to suggest either school districts are in need of funds or these measures are easier to pass.
The ER measure proposes to raise the county’s general sales tax from 0.25% to 0.75% for 5 years, aiming to generate $1 billion annually to fund healthcare services.
As of this month, LA County’s composite sales tax is around 11.3%, including a state tax of 7.3%, county tax of 0.25%, and city and special district taxes of 3.75% (with 73 jurisdictions under LA County, standards vary).
Eight cities in LA County proposed sales tax increases, including Bell, Bell Gardens, Commerce, Covina, Gardena, La Puente, Lomita, and San Marino.
Carson and Inglewood proposed an increase in fireworks sales tax; Los Angeles City proposed 3 tax measures – marijuana business tax, LA City hotel tax (TT and TC), and 2 districts proposed increases in property tax, Palos Verdes Estates and the Glen area of Pasadena.
Despite a decrease in enrollment in LA County public schools, 6 school districts proposed bond and tax measures, including Bonita Unified, Compton Unified, La Cañada Unified, Lawndale Elementary School District, Little Lake City, and South Pasadena Unified.
In Marin County, which has the second-highest number of tax measures at 11, 6 measures are related to school district bonds and tax measures, in addition to transportation track taxes, Fairfax Town sales tax, San Rafael Library tax, fire station community park district tax, and Muir Beach property tax increase.
In Southern California, apart from LA County, San Diego County and San Bernardino County each have 1 measure, Riverside County has 2 proposals, while Orange County, Ventura County, and Imperial County have no tax increase proposals.
The tax increase proposal in San Diego City (Measure A) proposes the establishment of an “Empty Homes Tax”: homeowners with second homes left vacant for less than 182 days a year or not rented out would need to pay property taxes of $8,000 and $10,000 for 2027 and 2028. Reform California commented that politicians refuse to cut wasteful spending, continually raising taxes over the past decade, finding new ways to collect revenue.
Additionally, Loma Linda X Measure in San Bernardino County, Riverside B Measure in Riverside County, and Perris Z Measure in Perris City all propose increases in sales tax.