In 2012, the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors placed the original (Measure A) half-cent sales tax on the November ballot as a means of raising local funds for local needs. The decision to place a local tax measure on the ballot followed several years of budget cuts due to the recession and because of decreased or unpredictable funding from the state and federal governments.
The half-cent sales tax was listed as Measure A on the November 2012 ballot. (A randomized alphabet drawing is used to assign a letter to each measure on a ballot.)
The tax measure passed with 65.4 percent (169,661 votes) “yes” vs. 34.6 percent (89,788 votes) “no.” It authorized the collection, starting on April 1, 2013, of a half-cent sales tax on taxable items through March 31, 2023.
Deciding to build on the progress being made with the local funds, the Board of Supervisors placed a 20-year extension of the sales tax on the November 2016 ballot, designated as Measure K in the randomized alphabet drawing. Measure K was overwhelmingly approved with 70.37 percent of the vote.
