Where will the money go if voters pass an Elk Grove sales tax increase in November?
Elk Grove would receive $21.3 million a year from the 1% transactions and use tax on the Nov. 8 ballot, if the city’s voters approve the increase.
How that revenue pie would be divided is yet unclear — the tax would likely begin being collected in April 2023. Elk Grove officials say they are following the lead of residents who said faster emergency response; reducing crime and addressing homelessness; improving and maintaining streets, roads and parks; and funding youth after-school programs are all high priorities for Elk Grove residents.
“What is going to make Elk Grove safe? What’s going to improve and increase our quality of life here? How do we do that?” Elk Grove City Manager Jason Behrmann said in July. “How do we ensure that those services and the things that people love about our community are maintained?”
Behrmann provided some hints as to where the money would go:
*Crime is on the rise, he said with increases in robberies and burglaries and car thefts in 2021. Behrmann said the city will need to hire 27 police personnel over the next five years to keep up with the city’s growth.
*Emergency response times at 7.5 minutes remain more than 2 minutes slower than the national standard. New Cosumnes Fire Department stations have opened and are on the drawing board, but 75% of the department’s calls are for emergency medical services.
“Minutes and seconds count,” Berhmann said. “That is a critical issue and that is something that really resonated with our community.”
*Many of Elk Grove’s roads and streets are 25 years old or older. Behrmann said $2 million a year will be needed to repair and maintain them. Roads projects and traffic signal improvements will also be needed as congestion on Elk Grove roads increases.
*Homelessness. As many as 150 people or more are unhoused in Elk Grove.
“It’s something that’s on everybody’s mind, not only in Elk Grove but all over the country. How do we properly address that? It takes resources,” Behrmann said. “The number of people experiencing homelessness in our community is increasing. What can we do about this growing concern?”
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