The City of Santa Barbara is asking for the community’s help as it struggles to deal with the continuing financial impacts of the pandemic.
The city is asking voters to approve a half-cent sales tax hike in November. The proposal calls for taking the current tax from 8.75% to 9.25%.
It would raise an estimated $15.6 million annually.
The city has been hard hit by inflation, plus major drops in sales tax and transient occupancy tax revenue due to the pandemic.
Despite spending cuts, the city has been forced to dip into its reserves and could have to continue to do so for the next three years unless the hike is approved. The city faced a $7 million budget shortfall for the upcoming fiscal year. It approved a $577 million budget this week.
