Former mayor says YES to Measure GG

I strongly recommend Piedmont voters support Measure GG on this November ballot. Measure GG is a “transfer tax,” a one-time assessmentcollected when property is sold or ownership is transferred. The current Piedmont transfer tax was set in 1993. It has not been updated in 33 years.

The transfer tax is a one-time tax levied on a property at the time of sale and is often split between the buyer and the seller. Piedmontdoes not have sales tax or any significant commercial tax revenue, so the transfer tax is a critical source of income and represents 10% of the annual operating budget of the City.

Proceeds from Measure GG will stay in Piedmont and support our core City services through the City’s General Fund. The City uses those revenues to partially pay for repair of aging City buildings, streets and sidewalks, parks, public safety and recreation.

Our neighboring communities of Oakland, Berkeley, Emeryville, and Richmond have all increased their transfer taxes far higher than Measure GG. While Piedmont home prices have risen in the last few years, maintenance expenses and construction costs for roads, sidewalks and storm drains have risen even faster.

As a former Councilmember and Mayor, and now Chair of the Budget Advisory and Financial Planning Committee, I have had a front row seat to City revenues and expenditures for the past 14 years. I can attest that the City Council has taken, and continues to take, a conservative approach to budgeting and expenditures. A long-overdue increase in the transfer tax would provide the City with revenue to continue to provide essential services and maintain the basic City infrastructure upon which we all rely. Please join me in voting YES on Measure GG.

– Bob McBain,
Former Mayor
Chair of the Budget Advisory and Financial Planning Committee