Sacramento street-safety and transit tax measure fails to qualify for November ballot
Sacramento’s proposed Safe Streets and Affordable Transit tax measure will not appear on the November 2026 ballot after the signature-check process found insufficient valid signatures.
The proposal, formally called the City of Sacramento Safe Streets and Affordable Transit Ordinance of 2026, would have imposed a half-cent transactions-and-use tax within Sacramento city limits. It did not reach voters for a decision because it did not qualify for the ballot.
Organizers submitted 32,481 signatures on June 30, 2026, according to reporting on the verification outcome. The available source material does not include the Sacramento County Registrar of Voters document establishing the final valid-signature count.
What the proposed tax would have funded
The measure proposed a dedicated local revenue source for transportation-related spending in the city. Its ballot-title summary allocated 48% of proceeds to repair and maintenance of streets and related facilities.
Other proposed spending covered transportation-safety infrastructure and transit funding. Safer Sac Streets, the organization supporting the measure, described it as a locally controlled half-cent transportation tax for streets, transit and public-safety-related transportation improvements.
The proposed tax would have applied within the City of Sacramento, rather than throughout Sacramento County. The measure’s stated spending categories included street maintenance, pedestrian and bicycle safety, and transit operations.
Revenue estimate was a campaign projection
Safer Sac Streets estimated the tax could generate approximately $70 million to $75 million a year. That range was an organizer projection, not an independent fiscal analysis, and the available material reflects varying estimates within that range.
Because the measure failed to qualify, neither the proposed tax nor its spending formula will take effect through the November 2026 election. In particular, the proposed 48% allocation for street repair and maintenance will not be created under this ordinance.
What happens next
The qualification failure leaves Sacramento City Council and existing transportation programs responsible for addressing the street, safety and transit needs the measure sought to fund. The available source packet identifies no replacement measure, new filing or other next procedural step by organizers or city officials.
The outcome is a ballot-access development, not an election result. Sacramento voters will not decide this specific half-cent tax proposal in November 2026.
Sources
- Initiative Measure to Impose a Transactions and Use Tax Within the City of Sacramento, City of Sacramento
- Sacramento Safe Streets and Affordable Transit Measure of 2026, Safer Sac Streets
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