Since 1987, West Sacramento has grown by 30,000 residents, 1,000 businesses, and 10,000 new daily trips. While the City has invested heavily in safety, parks, and infrastructure, costs have outpaced revenues due to aging facilities and higher maintenance needs.

Key challenges:

• Police: Response times for high-priority calls up to 16 minutes.
• Fire: Call volumes up 45% since 2012.
• Roads: 311% increase in pothole reports (2018–2023); 10 additional maintenance workers needed to meet demand.
• Parks: Since 2008, the City has added 53.6 acres of parkland, 12.5 miles of trails, 16 public art pieces, and 58,000 sq ft of facilities — all requiring ongoing upkeep.

The City Council adopted Resolution and Ordinance approving the measure language and placing the measure on the ballot can be viewed here.

• Effective Date: The tax went into effect April 1, 2025.
• First Payment: Estimated April revenues were received at the end of June 2025.
• Ongoing Payments: May revenues arrived in late July; a “true-up” payment for April–June followed in August 2025.

The City’s current ¼ cent funding measures include Measure K (2003), Measure V (2008), Measure E (2016) and Measure N (2018). These past measures have funded numerous City programs and projects related to roads, public safety, parks, childcare, flood protection, transportation, homelessness, and other important initiatives. The City Council receives annual reports on the use of these funds to confirm they are being expended according to their voter-approved uses and to assure that the funds maximize benefit to West Sacramento residents.

Annual reports for funding measures can be viewed here.

Past funding measure expenditures can be viewed in this comprehensive summary

While property taxes are an important source of funding for the City, making up 15.6% of total revenues and 46.7% of General Fund revenues, they can be unpredictable. New developments do contribute to the property tax base, but this growth is influenced by market forces beyond the City’s control. Additionally, California law imposes limits on the reassessment of property values and the setting of tax rates, which constrains the City’s options for addressing General Fund gaps.

Measure O proposes a sales tax that will create a stable and reliable revenue stream, essential for enhancing the core services the City provides. These services include road and transportation infrastructure, police and fire protection, and the maintenance of parks and trails. This funding will not only improve current services but also enable the City to effectively accommodate future growth by increasing both the quality and availability of services for residents.

Ordinance 24-7 and Resolution 24-52, adopted by the Council on May 15, 2024, constitute the Ballot Ordinance and full text of Measure O. A link to these documents has been added to the Measure O information page under the section “Why is the City Council proposing Measure O?”

Ordinance 24-7 is an uncodified ordinance which directed the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA) to impose and administer an additional 1% transactions and use tax in the city, if approved by the voters. The Measure O ballot measure language (i.e., the language presented in the voter information guide, “to rebuild roads and repair potholes…”) was adopted by the Council in Resolution 24-52, which calls for Yolo County to put the tax measure on the ballot with that specific language.

Additional information about the Council's consideration and adoption of Ordinance 24-7 and Resolution 24-52 can be found in the staff reports for the May 1^st and May 15^th City Council meetings.