Bay Area voters could soon be asked to vote on a sales tax measure to fund Bay Area transit systems, including BART and Muni, after state lawmakers on Friday passed a state bill.
Gov. Gavin Newsom has until Oct. 12 to either sign or veto Senate Bill 63, which is authored by state Senators Scott Wiener (San Francisco) and Jesse Arreguín (Berkeley). The measure would apply to five Bay Area counties: Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, San Francisco, and Santa Clara.
The tax rate is set at 0.5 percent, while San Francisco’s is 1 percent to provide additional support for funding Muni operations. The measure, if passed by voters, would fund transit operations in the Bay Area for 14 years.
“Keeping our trains and buses running frequently and reliably is essential for the future of the Bay Area,” Wiener said in a press release on Friday. “I’m grateful to see this incredible coalition from across the Bay Area come together to ensure our transit systems are financially stable and able to provide improved service for our residents.”
If passed by voters, Bay Area transit agencies would also have to adhere to accountability measures in SB 63, including having their financials reviewed by a third-party consultant to identify cost-saving measures. Transit agencies would need to submit a plan for how they plan to implement the cost-saving measures from the financial review.
Wiener and transportation officials have been warning about the impacts of not funding public transit in the Bay Area, including the possibility of longer waits for BART trains and station closures. Wiener added that Muni could have cut its frequency by 50 percent.
In a statement Saturday, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) described SB 63 as a “landmark piece of legislation” that not only protects Muni, but the rest of the Bay Area’s transit systems.
“This is a historic moment for our region — bringing together Bay Area counties to decide on the future of funding for Muni, BART, Caltrain, and AC Transit,” the city’s transportation agency said in a statement on Saturday. The SFMTA faces a projected $322 million deficit at the start of the next fiscal year, July 1, 2026.
If SB 63 is signed by Governor Newsom, and the measure is passed by voters, it would fund transit operations in the Bay Area transit operations for 14 years.
BART also released a statement that said work-at-home had caused a decline in ridership, which directly impacted the transit agency’s operating revenue. BART is facing an operating deficit of between $350 million and $400 million at the end of the 2026 fiscal year.
Even if Newsom signs the bill, transit advocates will likely need to gather signatures to place SB 63 on the ballot. Earlier polling from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) this year showed that while there was support to pass a sales tax measure, it would not be enough to pass with a two-thirds voter approval threshold if the MTC were to place the measure on the ballot. A signature-sponsored measure would only need a simple majority to pass.
Bay Area transit agencies could also be in limbo between now and the measure’s passage.
The state’s budget included a $750 million loan to Bay Area transit agencies to support them until revenue from the ballot measure begins in 2027. There was concern from state lawmakers earlier this month that the loan was not happening, at least not before the end of the legislative session.
Last week, the governor’s office announced its support for short-term funding for Bay Area transit agencies with “hundreds of millions of dollars,” but an exact amount was not mentioned.
Language from the legislation said the state’s Department of Finance has until Jan. 10, 2026, to complete its process to find “other financing options that might be used to provide sufficient short-term state financial assistance for local transit agencies.”