Transportation tax measure heads to ballot

A half-cent tax measure qualifies for the November 2024 ballot; would partially fund SANDAG’s controversial regional transportation plan

A one-half-cent sales tax measure qualified for the November 2024 ballot. The measure calls for transit, road and highway projects. Steve Puterski photo

COUNTY — A controversial one-half-cent sales tax increase to fund county transportation projects has qualified for the November ballot, according to Let’s Go! San Diego.

The coalition group of labor unions, environmental groups and a San Diego Association of Governments contractor spearheaded the citizens’ initiative. The County of San Diego Registrar of Voters qualified the measure with more than 125,000 valid signatures last week. The group submitted more than 172,000 signatures to the ROV.

Let’s Go! San Diego conducted a signature drive in 2022 but came up 20,000 signatures short of the 115,788 needed to qualify. The one-half-cent tax increase is one of two proposed for all county taxpayers as part of SANDAG’s ambitious $172 billion regional transportation, known as “The 5 Big Moves.”

However, a majority of the SANDAG Board of Directors did not push for the agency to put forward its own ballot measure. San Marcos Mayor Rebecca Jones and others have previously said the citizen’s initiative is a workaround as it only requires a simple majority vote to pass. In contrast, a measure put forward by SANDAG requires two-thirds of voters to approve.

If approved, it appears the money would be controlled by the coalition and not SANDAG. Additionally, the measure doesn’t have a sunset date or an estimate of total funds.

SANDAG’s plan calls for two one-half-cent tax increases with an estimated $21.6 billion in revenue, although those projections were calculated in 2020. The first measure is on this year’s ballot and the second has a target of 2028.

A message was left with Let’s Go! San Diego asking for clarification regarding who oversees the funds, a sunset date and who acts as administration services was not returned by deadline.

“After more than two years of organizing, Environmental Health Coalition, transit riders, and community advocates are proud the transit measure will be on the 2024 ballot. We worked hard for this moment,” Carolina Martinez, Climate Justice Campaign Director, said in a press release. “Currently, 70% of jobs are not reachable by public transit. This forces San Diegans into congested streets and highways which are leading contributors to climate change and air pollution in the San Diego region. By increasing service, frequency, and access, the measure will help build our economy, clean our air, and achieve our climate goals.”