When they cast their ballots, Alameda voters will decide whether or not to approve what is called a “Replacement Parcel Tax” to combine and terminate two existing measures, A and B1, passed in 2016 and 2020 respectively.
The Alameda Unified School District unanimously approved on November 14, 2023 the placing of parcel tax “Measure E” on the March 5, 2024 election ballot.
Should it pass, Measure E will assess each residential and commercial “building area square foot” at $0.585, the sum of two existing parcel tax measures’ levies of $0.32 for Measure B1 and $0.265 for measure A.
Measure E would tax a building that is 1,800 square feet, for example, at $1,053, the same total amount currently charged by Measures A and B1. In that sense, the tax is ‘revenue neutral,’ and its passage will maintain the current funding level of A and B1, but not result in any increase to AUSD revenues.
Measures A and B1 currently provide about $24 million annually to The District.
Measure E caps the maximum to be paid per parcel at $15, 998, the sum of the cap on the two other measures, each of which is currently capped at $7,999 per parcel.
The new cap will limit the maximum amount of property tax paid on buildings whose size is just over 27,200 building square feet or greater.
Exemptions to the tax may be granted to some persons who own and occupy the building as their primary residence. The opt-outs apply to those who are 65 years of age or older; receive Supplemental Security Income for a disability, regardless of age; or receive Social Security Disability Insurance benefits, regardless of age, whose yearly income does not exceed 250% of the 2012 federal poverty guidelines.
If approved, Measure E will end taxation under A and B1 and replace them on July 1, 2025 when it takes effect and sunset nine years after.
To see the actual ballot measure, Alameda County’s non-partisan analysis and arguments for and against, click: