After county transportation tax stall, will Fresno try its own? What the mayor says
With Measure C set to expire next year, would Fresno consider its own tax to keep revenues flowing for transportation projects?
Maybe — but it will be difficult, Mayor Jerry Dyer told The Fresno Bee on Wednesday.
“I don’t know what’s going to be the appetite for somebody pursuing a general fund tax for the city of Fresno, especially in these economic times, when they already know that there’s going to be a measure on the March 2028 ballot for transportation,” Dyer said.
Measure C, the countywide sales tax dedicated to transportation projects, expires June 30. An attempt to place a successor tax on the November ballot —an initiative called Better Roads, Safe Streets, and backed by Dyer — appears to have stalled.
On Tuesday, the Fresno County Board of Supervisors ordered a study on the tax. The study would not be ready until after Aug. 7, the deadline to place an item on the ballot.
One complication for a city transportation tax is that the countywide tax plan will still be on the ballot, albeit delayed. Without that factor, Dyer said a Fresno-only tax “would be a much more realistic pursuit.” The measure will still be decided by voters, but not until March 7, 2028. That could leave at least an eight-month gap of no transportation funding from a local measure.
The Fresno Council of Governments estimated Fresno received $32 million in Measure C funds in 2023-24.
If the city pursues a general fund tax, it only needs a majority to pass. A government-led measure where money is for a specific purpose, such as transportation, it needs two-thirds to pass, a “very difficult” threshold, Dyer said.
“I don’t want to put this city or the people of Fresno through something that is just not going to happen,” Dyer said.
Clock ticking if Fresno-only tax pursued
If Fresno does pursue a tax plan, the clock is ticking. The last Fresno City Council meeting before the Aug. 7 deadline is July 30. The agenda publishes July 24.
“We would have to really do some incredible scrambling, although I’m very confident our city attorney could do that. I just don’t know if there is an appetite to do that at this time. I don’t want to do anything that’s going to be half-baked,” Dyer said.
Formulating the Better Roads, Safe Streets plan took nearly a year, Dyer said.
Fresno City Council President Nelson Esparza said he could be on board.
“I’m open to considering a stopgap measure for the city, perhaps something that would expire upon renewal of a countywide transportation tax,” Esparza said. “It’s a short time frame, but it can be done.”
The Fresno City Council on June 18 unanimously passed a resolution supporting Better Roads, Safe Streets. But, placing a city tax measure on the ballot could provide another complication. Three of the seven councilmembers are running for election in November — Mike Karbassi for Fresno County supervisor, Annalisa Perea for state Assembly and Esparza for the state Board of Equalization.
“I think it always complicates things,” Dyer said, “when you have people who are running for office; people that are, you know, concerned about that being used against them in a campaign.”
