Not another tax

Proposing a parcel tax right now would be, at the very least, tone deaf. Families are struggling to stay afloat and increasing the cost of living, even in the most seemingly trivial way, could be devastating. But doesn’t the county already have funds and public agencies already dedicated to the issue of wildfire and sea-level rise? Aren’t we already being taxed to fund these agencies? The answer is yes and there are millions of dollars dedicated to prevent the devastating effects of climate change. There are numerous special districts that exist, and many of them overlap in their functions.

I talked to Virginia Chang Kiraly, an elected official who currently sits on the board of two special districts, the San Mateo County Harbor District and the Menlo Park Fire Protection District. She’s come out strongly against this parcel tax idea because she says, “While the importance of continuing to work on reducing wildfire threats, flooding and sea-level rise, despite being in a drought, and other natural disasters exists, this parcel tax is a redundant tax since San Mateo County residents are already paying taxes to special districts, such as fire districts, sewer districts, the Harbor District, and the Open Space District, for example, for services such as fire protection, open-space protection, waste management, and managing the county’s harbor resources.”

Indeed, we need to be looking at the current resources, maximizing output through collaborative synergy, so that we protect the pockets of our people. “All of us — the cities and special districts — should be working together to understand how we can maximize resources and efficiencies. We owe that to San Mateo County taxpayers before imposing another tax during a difficult time for families and residents,” Chang Kiraly said. She’s also started a petition to the County Board of Supervisors to put an end to a potential parcel tax (bit.ly/noparceltax).

You may not know this, but San Mateo County has one of the largest county budgets ($3.3B) out of the more than 3,000 counties in the nation. We are uniquely positioned to tackle major issues if we spend wisely and seek to unite the resources currently available. After recent news of multi-million dollar losses of taxpayer money in the county, taxpayer confidence has surely taken a hit and I’m urging our leaders to think hard about how another tax could impact so many that are already struggling to make ends meet. Please, not another tax.

As president of the San Mateo County Latinx Democratic Club, I want to take this opportunity to congratulate those candidates who have received the club’s endorsements:

• Kevin Mullin for Congressional District 15;

• Giselle Hale for Assembly District 21;

• James Coleman for Assembly District 21;

• Christina Corpus for San Mateo County sheriff;

• Noelia Corzo, District 2, county Board of Supervisors; and

• David Pollack, assessor-county clerk-recorder and chief elections officer.

These candidates received at least 60% of the voting members’ votes for their dedication to improving the lives of the hard-working, and heavily impacted, Latino community in the county. Good luck to the candidates in the June 7 primary election.

Rudy Espinoza Murray is a father, husband, Redwood City resident, and community organizer. The views expressed are his own. Follow him on twitter: @respinoza22