With Goleta tied for the lowest sales tax rate among cities in Santa Barbara County, and the city has several unfunded projects and costs, the Goleta City Council held a special meeting Tuesday morning to talk about a potential sales tax measure and where the revenue could be used.
The City of Goleta is planning to put a 1% sales tax measure on the November ballot that, if approved by voters, would be a general tax applied to everyone who purchases retail goods within city limits.
Many essential items — such as food, prescription medicine, gasoline, and items paid for with food stamps — would be exempt from the sales tax. A full list of exemptions can be found here.
“The city has over $104 million in unfunded Capital Improvement Program projects, $9 million in annual deferred maintenance costs for pavement and other assets, and a significant number of strategic and master plan documents reflecting community priorities that lack a source of ongoing revenue to implement,” the staff report for the item states. “The November 2022 sales tax measure provides a significant opportunity for voters to address the needs of the Goleta community now and into the future. Should the voters approve the measure, it is estimated to raise $10,600,000 per year for general government purposes.”
Surveys and polls of Goleta voters during the past few years have shown consistent support for the sales tax measure. More information on those results can be found in the staff report on the matter during the Goleta City Council’s June 7 meeting.
Some projects that community members have expressed as those they want prioritized include the Homeless Strategic Plan, the Creek and Watershed Management Plan, the Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan, the Ellwood Mesa/Sperling Preserve Open Space Monarch Butterfly Habitat Management Plan, the Goleta Community Center Strategic Plan, and others.
Several public commenters spoke during the meeting Tuesday in support of the sales tax increase and expressed support for applying its revenue toward the Creeks and Watershed Management Plan, as well as repaving roads and management of the Ellwood Mesa and Lake Los Carneros.
“I do know a lot about what the hotel occupancy tax did in the city of Santa Barbara. It really transformed the creeks remarkably. … I believe this is an opportunity for Goleta to do the same thing with its wonderful watersheds,” said Ken Owen, executive director of Channel Islands Restoration. “I’m really here to urge you folks to support a sales tax increase and apply that to the creeks, because it’s really going to be a substantial measure for the council to provide and for the citizens of Goleta to provide, to actually be a part of the solution for our environmental problems.”
The Goleta City Council will be continuing its discussion on the sales tax measure and spending plan, as well as provide another opportunity for community members to speak during public comment, during its next regular meeting scheduled for 5:30 p.m. next Tuesday.
— Noozhawk staff writer Serena Guentz can be reached at sguentz@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.