The San Diego Taxpayers Association is tracking some dozen tax measures with the potential to make their way on to the November ballot across San Diego. One countywide, citizen-led initiative has already qualified for the fall 2024 election. Let's Go San Diego is a half-cent sales tax increase intended to fund public transportation projects and support highway improvements through SANDAG.
Amongst the projects the tax revenue would address are fixes to the North County rail corridor, a rail connection to the airport and a light rail line along the I-805 corridor. The Environmental Health Coalition, which backs the measure, hopes improvements to transportation would make San Diegans less reliant on passenger cars.
"They're also causing toxic air pollution, and so, as a result, our kids are getting asthma and 70% of the jobs are not reachable by transit in San Diego County," Carolina Martinez, EHC's climate justice campaign manager, said, adding that improving public transport helps seek justice for people in the communities most impacted by climate change. "Gas is very expensive. Buying a car very expensive. Maintaining a car very expensive ... so we could address that by using transit. We could also ensure that the taxes that are funded through this measure go back to our communities and we could connect to jobs."
The non-partisan Taxpayers Association has yet to make a recommendation on the Let's Go San Diego measure. They are tracking this measure, and some dozen others in cities across San Diego.
Get San Diego local news, weather forecasts, sports and lifestyle stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC San Diego newsletters.
"We're already putting a lot of money into the kitty, and we try to make sure that that past performance is what we're getting first before we recommend to the voters that they support another tax increase," said Taxpayers Association President Haney Hong.
City of San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria is actively supporting a one cent sales tax to improve roads and infrastructure. It has to be approved by the city council before making its way on to the ballot, alongside the half-cent county-wide sales tax increase. However, if both pass, the sales tax in San Diego could go from 7.75% to more than 9%, according to Hong.
Deion Harris is a regular public transit rider. The civil engineering student said he is not keen on paying for more road improvements but would support the sales tax increase to improve transit. That support, he said, is riding on seeing change and growth.
Local
"You miss the connection, and now you have to wait another 30 minutes and that kills it," said Harris. "Whatever has to happen to get it, get it, get it done or even start it."
