Voters in the Bay Area passed measures to fund transit by raising sales tax to help close budget deficits and meet operational needs.
The Regional Transit Measure (RTM) that was on the ballot in five counties, Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo, and Santa Clara, will raise the sales tax in each county to fund transit operations and help with operational deficits. In San Francisco, the sales tax will rise by 1 percent, while the sales tax in four other counties will increase by 0.5 percent. The sales tax increase will take effect in April of next year and last for 14 years. RTM is expected to generate $980 million annually
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, which oversees Muni, will receive about $155 million annually. BART said it will receive approximately $310 million annually. Caltrain said it would receive about 7 percent of revenue generated by the sales tax each year.
Without the funding, several transit agencies, including BART, Caltrain, and the SFMTA, have warned of future service cuts, including reduced service hours, station closures, and cut bus routes.
“This public investment allows BART to survive post-pandemic travel patterns, remain the transportation backbone of the region, and modernize our funding model for the next 14 years,” BART said in a statement on Wednesday. “Measure RTM prevents station closures and dramatic service reductions, but it does not eliminate BART’s financial challenges. Taxpayers and riders are doing their part, and we must continue to do ours.”
After the first round of RTM results were released on election night, BART General Bob Powers, who attended the RTM election night party, said, “I think the results are the voters putting their trust back in public transit.”
Powers added that BART will continue to “improve the customer service and lean into it.”
Caltrain said in a statement that the funding will keep the transit system running without interruptions, seven days a week.
“When it mattered most, our region came together to support transit, benefiting everyone who lives in the Bay Area. We will remain focused on providing safe, reliable, and efficient service while ensuring accountability and remaining responsible stewards of public funds,” Caltrain Executive Director Michelle Bouchard said in a statement on Wednesday.
Opponents of the measure said that instead of the sales tax increase, Bay Area transit agencies should have been more fiscally responsible with their budgets and cut top-management and director salaries.
Marc Joffe, president of the Contra Costa Taxpayers Association, has been vocal about his opposition to RTM. On the social media platform X, Joffe said that “scaremongering from the pro-tax side financed by millions in special interest money and a captured media was too much to overcome.”
As of Wednesday morning, 61.5 percent of voters favored approving RTM.
A separate measure in San Francisco that will also fund Muni appears likely to pass. Proposition H will add a parcel tax to properties in the city. The parcel tax is expected to generate approximately $160 million for Muni operations. The parcel tax rate for most single-family homes will be about $129 and commercial properties at $799. Rates could vary depending on the size of the property. Mayor Daniel Lurie supported Proposition H.
As of Wednesday at 4 p.m., the San Francisco Department of Elections showed Proposition H with 72.8 percent of voters in favor of passing the measure.
“San Franciscans and voters across the Bay Area made it clear that Muni and transit is worth the investment,” the SFMTA said in a statement on Wednesday. “These public investments will strengthen Muni and our Bay Area transit partners, and ensure that we can continue to provide safe, reliable, and frequent transit service.”
