Sales Tax Hike on Ballot in Three Valley Cities

Residents in Three Valley Cities Will Vote on Possible Sales Tax Increase

COACHELLA VALLEY — Residents in three communities — Cathedral City, Palm Desert and Desert Hot Springs — will decide on Nov. 5 whether to approve a sales tax hike. All three communities are seeking the increase for a variety of reasons.

Residents in Cathedral City will decide whether to increase the city sales tax by a half cent. The sales tax in Cathedral City is currently 8.75%, which includes the 7.25% statewide sales tax, 0.5% county tax and 1% city tax. If the measure is approved, Cathedral City’s sales tax would become 9.25%. It, along with Palm Springs, would be the highest rate in Riverside County, Ryan Hunt, Communication and Events Manager, confirmed.

The money would be used for a variety of projects, including, placing into service a fourth ambulance to maintain response times to medical emergencies even as calls for service increase

Desert Hot Springs voters will decide whether to approve a one-cent sales tax to help pay for city services to maintain services such as emergency response, disaster preparation and pothole repairs. If approved, the sales tax hike would raise about $2,4 million annually.

The city’s current sales tax is 7.75%, with 1% of revenue going to the city and the rest to the state of California and other agencies.

The Palm Desert Public Safety, Roads, City Services Measure was placed on the Nov, 5 ballot to raise additional revenue to support the City’s General Fund.

The city of Palm Desert provides a variety of general municipal services, including fire, police, and emergency 911 medical response; senior and library services; parks maintenance; homelessness response; and other general maintenance and services. In recent years, the City’s ability to maintain these services has become more challenging due to operating costs rising at a faster pace than revenues.

The Palm Desert Public Safety, Roads, City Services Measure seeks voter approval to authorize a 1 cent sales tax to maintain city services. If approved, the Measure is estimated to generate approximately $25 million annually to support Palm Desert’s General Fund.

In June, the Palm Desert City Council unanimously agreed to place a sales tax measure on the November ballot that would increase the city’s rate to 8.75% from 7.75%.

According to a city-initiated survey, 73% of those who responded agreed Desert Hot Springs needs more money.