The two organizations had been preparing to campaign against the new business tax but agreed not to oppose it after the measure was scaled back. That version, which was expected to raise about $15 million, was shelved during negotiations between a committee of council members and leaders of the Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce and the Silicon Valley Leadership Group. The new tax will be far more modest than the one the council considered earlier this year, when it considered a rate of 12 cents per square foot and exemptions for businesses with less than 5,000 square feet of space. It would only apply to businesses with more than 10,000 square feet of space and would tax businesses $0.075 per square foot, with a maximum tax of $500,000.Īlso Read : Woodstock competition offers $30,000 prize for best business idea The tax is projected to raise about $9.6 million annually, with revenue split into three categories: affordable housing, rail corridor improvements and public safety. The adoption of the business tax followed years of debate and intense negotiations with local and regional business leaders. “They think the government is doing good things for them and this is their chance to help with those things,” Reckdahl said. ![]() Keith Reckdahl, who led the Measure K campaign, said the result points to the fact that people generally trust local government and have a high opinion of the quality of local services. Two measures passed easily, with Measure K, the business tax, receiving 67% of the vote and Measure L, the gas transmission policy, winning 77%, with 96% of constituencies registering. ![]() City officials warned that without new revenue streams, many services that had been restored over the past year would have to be cut again. Although city revenues have largely recovered after taking a hit during the pandemic, the current budget relies in part on one-time sources such as federal grants to fund public safety jobs and other essential services. Palo Alto voters offered the City Council a financial lifeline Tuesday night when they overwhelmingly approved the city’s business tax and upheld its historic practice of transferring funds from the gas company to pay for basic city services.īy approving Measure K and Measure L, both by wide margins, voters significantly brightened the financial outlook at City Hall after two years of uncertainty.
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