All city measures in San Mateo County pass

All of the business license tax measures passed with at least 75% of the vote as of 11 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 5.

Belmont’s BLT measure, or Measure DD, will not result in an increase in city revenue but was instead meant to streamline the number of business categories and lessen tax burden for small businesses. The new BLT model consolidates and simplifies the number of business categories — going from more than 20 to four categories — ranging from restaurants to professional services, such as technology firms. The rate will follow a gross receipts model where businesses pay 40 cents to $1 per $1,000 of their total receipts revenue depending on the type of establishment, although cannabis operations will pay $100 per $1,000. It passed with 84.34% of the vote.

Foster City’s Measure V passed with about 77% of the vote and is expected to generate an additional $1.4 million more each year and would have a $250,000 annual tax payment cap. The measure will increase the rate for many businesses, especially the city’s largest, ranging from 75 cents per $1,000 in gross receipts to $3 per $1,000 in gross receipts, depending on the firm’s revenue. The city’s smallest businesses will only be subject to a minimum $100 annual tax.

South San Francisco’s Measure W will generate about $2.6 million annually, according to the city attorney’s estimates. It will not have an annual cap for employers. Rather than a gross receipts model, the new model will retain a mostly per-employee format, but will simplify general business categories into just a few main groups, depending on their sizes. The measure passed with about 80% of the vote as of 11 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 5. 

Redwood City’s Measure BB also passed. The updated tax is an adjusted per employee rate based on defined job categories, with tiered rates depending on number of employees, and a maximum annual tax not to exceed $250,000. The tax increase will be phased in over two years — 50% of each rate will be made effective July 1, 2025, and the full rate will be effective the following year. 

Half Moon Bay’s Measure R passed with about 63% of the vote, as of 11 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 5. The sales tax will raise additional revenue to support the city’s general fund — approximately $2 million in additional funds per year, according to the city’s website — by raising the city’s sales tax to 9.875%. The additional revenue is meant to fund essential services like 911 response times, sheriff’s patrols, disaster and emergency preparedness, maintaining youth recreation services and addressing traffic congestion, among other programs. 

Millbrae voters approved by 77% Measure FF, which will update the city’s long-standing practice of having some of the most restrictive term limit regulations in San Mateo County. Since 1997, Millbrae councilmembers have not been allowed to serve more than two consecutive terms — a restriction only Pacifica and Foster City share. With Measure FF’s passage, councilmembers’ term limits will increase to three four-year terms. 

San Bruno’s Measure Q also passed with 71.43%, which will authorize the city to take out $102 million in bonds to pay for certain infrastructure projects with a tax rate of 3 cents per every $100 of assessed property value — or $300 a year on a $1 million house. The funds will go toward stormwater systems, upgrades to fire stations and equipment and road fixtures.

San Carlos will transition to an appointed treasurer position, rather than holding elections for the position, as the city’s Measure L passed with about 75% of the vote. The only qualifications required of elected city treasurers by state law are that they are at least 18 years old and registered voters of the city. The shift to appointment would allow the city to require certain experience and qualifications, as well as conduct annual audits of the appointee’s work.

San Mateo’s Measure T also passed with 58.56%, though the opposition got the highest percentage of votes out of any ballot measure throughout the county, as of 11 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 5. The measure will allow higher height and density limits in 10 areas throughout the city, including areas near Caltrain stations and El Camino Real. Within certain parts of those areas, residential or mixed-use buildings could have height limits up to eight stories, which could increase to 10 stories, depending on whether state density bonus laws apply. The effort originated largely from the Department of Housing and Community Development’s stricter oversight and increased requirements for cities’ housing goals, or Regional Housing Needs Allocation, in response to the state’s affordability crisis. 

Semiofficial election results will be updated as counting proceeds. All mail ballots postmarked from Nov. 5 and received by Nov. 12 will be accepted, and about 40% are received after Election Day, according to the Elections Office. Further results will be posted 4:30 p.m. Nov. 7, Nov. 8, Nov. 11, Nov. 13, Nov. 15, Nov. 18, Nov. 20 and Nov. 22.  The election is to be certified Dec. 5, according to the Elections Office.