Los Angeles County supervisors voted Tuesday to place a measure on the November ballot that would double the county's homeless sales tax to half a cent to fund housing and homeless support services.
If approved by voters, Measure HThe 25-cent sales tax was approved by voters in 2017 and was set to expire in 2027.
of Alternative measures Officially called the “Affordable Housing, Homelessness Solution and Prevention” Act, the bill was placed on the ballot last week after supporters voted to do so. Collected More than 390,000 signatures were collected, and County Registrar-Recorder Dean Logan estimated that about three-quarters of them were valid, more than enough to get the motion on the November ballot.
The committee voted 4-0 Tuesday to put the bill to a vote without any changes. Supervisor Janice Hahn was not present.
“We're far from providing enough housing for low- and moderate-income Los Angeles residents,” Board Chair Lindsay Holbert said at Tuesday's meeting. “We have no time to waste.”
The tax is estimated to generate about $1.2 billion a year in revenue to support homeless services, affordable housing, mental health and substance abuse treatment, and would require programs funded by the tax to undergo audits and set goals to ensure funds are spent on initiatives most likely to keep homeless people off the streets.
Supporters said at Tuesday's meeting that they've learned from Measure H and believe this updated sales tax would put funds to better use. The tax would also be indefinite and could only be repealed by a future vote.
“The crisis we face today is not for a lack of trying,” California Community Foundation CEO Miguel Santana told the board. “This work will deliver long-term, systemic and accountable change.”
Faced with voters angry at the lack of progress on homelessness, county supervisors success The county welcomed the approval of Measure H, saying the measure has infused funds into the county, prevented more than 30,000 people from becoming homeless and helped more than 100,000 people find permanent housing.
“I have the receipts,” Superintendent Holly Mitchell said.
The bill is supported by a coalition of housing providers and labor groups, including SEIU 721 and the Los Angeles County Labor Federation, whose president, Yvonne Wheeler, told supervisors she believes the tax would make housing less affordable for workers and protect them from eviction.
No one spoke out against it Tuesday, but some experts Predicted Anti-tax groups may emerge who oppose this measure.
“I want to remind everyone that we still have a lot of work to do before we can pass this bill in November,” Dexter O'Connell, director of the homeless advocacy group Safe Places for Youth, told the committee.
