Half-cent sales tax increase on Cathedral City ballot in November

CATTHEDRAL CITY – Residents of this community will vote on Nov. 5 whether to increase the city sales tax by half a cent. The sales tax in Cathedral City is currently 8.75%, which includes the countywide sales tax of 7.25%, the county tax of 0.5% and the city tax of 1%.

If the measure is approved, Cathedral City’s sales tax would be 9.25%, tied with Palm Springs for the highest rate in Riverside County, said Ryan Hunt, communications and events manager.

The tax is a general tax that the City Council approves from the budget each year and is expected to raise about $5 million, which is controlled locally and cannot be collected by the state or other levels of government.

If approved, the city should receive money for the quarter from April 1 to June 30, 2025, no later than August 2025. There is no sunset clause built in. The law is in effect until it is repealed by voters, Hunt said.

How will the money be used? The current plan, according to Hunt, is as follows:

• The Cathedral City Fire Department will be able to staff and operate a fourth ambulance to maintain response times to medical emergencies as demand increases.
• Additional funds are available for the paving and maintenance of the district’s streets.
• Funds will be made available to make Cathedral City part of the Desert Recreation District, which will provide parks and recreational facilities to residents and help keep the parks safe.

The funds collected through Measure W are subject to annual external auditing and strict control by a citizens’ advisory board.

The proposal to increase sales tax should not come as a big surprise to citizens.

In 2022, after the defeat of Measure K, McClendon said, he will meet with the DRD, the City Council and community members to discuss next steps. He wants to explore ways to get the same benefits from DRDDD, but perhaps through a different path. “There’s always a path,” he said. “The voters sent us a message.”

“That’s the alternative,” Hunt told Uken Report.

The city manager has appointed a resident study committee to examine the community’s unmet needs, Hunt said. This committee represented a cross-section of Cathedral City residents and 11 people participated by attending at least one meeting. Meetings with this group were held from October 2023 to January 2024, with the last meeting being held on Jan. 11, 2024. The agenda included a review of previous presentations, followed by a discussion of committee members’ ideas to address identified funding gaps. Discussions included the applicability and limitations of grants, public-private partnerships and earmarked tax measures. Ultimately, committee members agreed to recommend a half-cent general sales tax (transaction and use tax) to the City Council.