Measure ER

Why Thrive LA opposes Measure ER

Measure ER would impose a new half-cent sales tax across Los Angeles County for five years, raising approximately $1 billion per year. The revenue would flow into the county's general fund, with a non-binding spending plan directing it toward county hospitals, community clinics, and public health services. Vote No. Every new tax reduces economic activity, and this one is enormous. At $5 billion over five years, Measure ER would push LA County's combined sales tax rate to 10.25%, the legal state maximum. That means LA County would have zero remaining local sales tax capacity, and no city within the county could levy its own sales tax increase without special state legislation. Residents already paying among the highest sales taxes of any major metro in the nation would see that burden grow, and businesses near county borders would lose customers to neighboring jurisdictions. The measure's structure tells you everything about the Board of Supervisors' priorities. Proponents deliberately classified this as a general tax so it needs only a simple majority to pass, not the two-thirds supermajority required for a special tax with legally enforceable spending restrictions. The "spending plan" is a wish list. The oversight committee is advisory. And the measure was placed on a low-turnout June primary ballot rather than the November general election, a strategic choice proponents openly acknowledged to improve their odds. Proponents frame the measure as an emergency response to federal Medi-Cal funding cuts, but the county has not demonstrated it exhausted alternatives before reaching into residents' wallets. The crisis framing deserves skepticism, not a blank check. Measure ER is a billion-dollar annual tax with no binding accountability, structured to avoid voter protections, and rushed onto a low-turnout ballot. LA County residents deserve better.