Tucson Mayor Regina Romero speaks to supporters of Prop. 414, shortly after initial voting results showed 69% of Tucson voters rejected a half-cent sales tax increase.
This is a developing story.
A bid to raise Tucson’s sales tax by half a cent is failed Tuesday night, with the City Clerk’s Office reporting a 69% no vote with the majority of voting precincts reporting.
A watch party hosted by Yes on 414, in favor of the proposition, wrapped up shortly after the decisive first ballot drop.
“When you’re running any type of revenue and tax increase, and you have organized no, it’s a tough lift. It’s a tough lift,” said City Councilmember Paul Cunningham.
Mayor Regina Romero also expressed disappointment and frustration with the results.
“I will ask those that ran the ‘no’ campaign, I want to see solutions. You have said no, show me your plan,” Romero said.
The No Prop 414 coalition called the election results "an important victory."
"We hope city leaders will take away from Prop 414’s failure that if they are going to ask working families in Tucson to pay higher taxes, they must allocate tax revenues to programs and services that actually benefit Tucsonans– housing and services, mental health resources, better education, better public transit, and reduced community harms, instead of systems that do not solve our problems or reduce harms– like increased policing and surveillance," the group's statement reads.
With no revenue increase, Cunningham said the city council’s budget will need to be rearranged to avoid any gaps in city services.
“Some of the efficiency that we’re looking for won’t be available, it’ll take a little longer to do, so that’s kind of the disappointing part, but I think there’s some strategies and pieces we can look at in order to at least make up any hole that the budget presents,” he said.
Initial vote counts showed about 76,000 people voted in the city’s special election, a turnout rate of about 25%.
Background
Prop 414 was put on the ballot as an investment in public safety, under an initiative the city named the Safe & Vibrant City: Community Investments Plan.
Mayor Regina Romero and the Tucson City Council supported the measure as a way to ensure improvements to its fire, police, and 911 services.
Two-thirds of the estimated $800 million dollars in revenue projections were to be allocated to expand personnel, buy new vehicles and aircraft, and other technology.
Last month, several Democratic state lawmakers came out against the measure, criticizing the city council for not prioritizing first responder funding in their existing budget.
“Shame on the city for not prioritizing their budget to make sure that they can pay for public safety,” State Representative Consuelo Hernandez, D-Tucson, said in February.
The sales tax also received criticism for being regressive, meaning higher prices would hit the lowest income residents the hardest.
However, Prop. 414 supporters said more investment in public safety would actually help Tucson’s small businesses, with the roughly 30% earmarked for housing and drug programs.
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