6 of 7 SLO County cities have tax measures on the ballot. Here’s how you should vote

Nearly every city in the county — with the exception of Arroyo Grande — has some form of tax increase on the November ballot.

We urge voters in these jurisdictions to support each and every one of them.

Local governments are in trouble, and it doesn’t take reams of statistics to figure out why. Every city in San Luis Obispo County depends on tourism to some degree, and that’s been largely wiped out by the coronavirus pandemic.

Restaurants, hotels, bars, wineries, shops, movie theaters, museums and concert venues have been either shut down or operating at limited capacity since March.

Many businesses, including stalwarts such as Beverly’s Fabrics in San Luis Obispo and Bed Bath & Beyond in Paso Robles, have closed or plan to do so.

That’s been most heartbreaking for businesses, their employees and their customers, but it indirectly affects all of us who benefit from the services financed by sales and bed taxes.

The city of San Luis Obispo, for example, expects sales and bed tax to be down more than $5 million this fiscal year, when compared to earlier projections.

On top of those losses, cities had unanticipated expenses related to COVID-19.

“We’ve invested nearly $1 million in those little parklets in the downtown,” San Luis Obispo city manager Derek Johnson said.

Federal help lacking during coronavirus pandemic

The federal government provided some assistance to state and local governments through the CARES Act.

According to a May report in CalMatters, that didn’t trickle down to small communities; financial assistance went to jurisdictions with populations of more than 500,000. And even that money had strings attached; it could be used only for COVID-related expenses.

So what choices do local governments have?

They can cut costs, which they’ve already done.

The city of San Luis Obispo furloughed 184 employees this year.

The much smaller city of Morro Bay reduced its staff from 99 full-time equivalent employees to 88, and the remaining workers have taken pay cuts ranging from 5% to 8%.

Even with those measures, Morro Bay has dipped into reserves. When those are gone, it will have to start cutting police and fire budgets.

“We have one more year of using our reserves before we get to the danger zone,” Morro Bay city manager Scott Collins said. “It’s not an exaggeration. Unfortunately, that’s where we’re at.”

Morro Bay is looking at other ways to raise revenue, including charging for parking. But that would have to go before the state Coastal Commission and would likely take many months to implement. Morro Bay can’t wait that long.

1% tax increases would raise millions

The cities of Atascadero, Grover Beach, Morro Bay, Paso Robles and San Luis Obispo are all asking voters to approve 1-cent sales tax measures, which would raise their tax rates to 8.75%. San Luis Obispo also is asking voters to extend an existing half-cent tax due to expire in 2023.

Pismo Beach is seeking to raise its bed tax by 1%, to 11 %.

Here’s what those new taxes are expected to generate annually:

• Atascadero, $4.5
• Grover Beach, $1.8 million
• Morro Bay, $1.5 million
• Paso Robles, $10 million
• Pismo Beach, $1 million
• San Luis Obispo, $21.6 million

Bad timing for new taxes

With so many people suffering financial setbacks, this is an awful time for local cities to ask voters to raise taxes — even if the amounts aren’t all that significant, and tourists will be paying a good chunk of the money.

But consider the alternative.

Without an infusion of revenue, cities may not be able to keep enough cops on the street, pave even the worst potholes or keep parks and playgrounds in decent shape. They may not be able to process permits in a timely manner, respond to code enforcement complaints or respond to the needs of growing homeless populations.

Yet there are some voters politically opposed to raising taxes, no matter how dire the situation.

Others say they would support a tax, only if it had a sunset clause — or if it were earmarked for a special use, such as public safety, or they could be assured the money would be spent wisely.

But if the tax was designated for a particular purpose, the bar for passage would be much higher. A two-thirds super majority would be needed, rather than a simple majority.

As for worrying the tax revenue would be frittered away or kept in place too long, there’s a check-and-balance system to prevent that: elections.

If you don’t like how your city spends the money, vote the council out of office.

How much would taxe increases cost me?

Let’s put tax increase in perspective.

If you spend $50 at the hardware store, that additional 1% tax will add just 50 cents to your bill.

Or let’s say you spend $1,000 per month on taxable purchases. That adds an additional $10.

That’s a small price to pay to maintain a decent level of service in the face of so much economic misery.

Not only will cities be able to continue providing all those services we’ve grown to expect, but they’ll also be in a far better position to help local businesses — and to recruit new ones — if they have adequate revenue.

One final, cautionary note: The coronavirus pandemic isn’t over. We could experience a second wave of COVID-19 this winter, forcing another round of shutdowns and even more financial losses for cities.

This is an opportunity to invest our dollars where they will do the most good — right here in our own neighborhoods.

The Tribune strongly urges voting yes on local tax measures in Atascadero, Grover Beach, Morro Bay, Paso Robles, Pismo Beach and San Luis Obispo.

This story was originally published October 4, 2020 at 5:30 AM.