S.F. Mayor Lurie takes no position on competing business tax measures

"The conflict began in November, when a coalition of San Francisco unions announced a plan to collect signatures for a ballot measure to raise $200 million a year for the city. They proposed increasing taxes on businesses whose CEOs earn at least 100 times their median employee's pay. The business community objected to the tax and in December began collecting signatures for a competing measure."

"Labor leaders say that the revenue from their tax measure is necessary to prevent cuts to healthcare and other essential city services as the city faces a billion-dollar deficit. Eight of the city's eleven supervisors agreed and have backed the measure. Lurie said the measure would not be helpful with the city's budget crisis. "They have no impact on the imminent budget deficit or federally imposed healthcare cuts we face right now," he said, because money from labor's tax won't arrive until 2028."

Mayor Daniel Lurie will not support either of two competing business tax measures on the June ballot. A coalition of unions proposed raising $200 million annually by taxing companies whose CEOs earn at least 100 times median employee pay; the business community countered with a measure raising the taxable revenue threshold from $5 million to $7.5 million while keeping rates essentially the same. Labor argues the unions' revenue is needed to prevent healthcare and service cuts amid a billion-dollar deficit and won backing from eight supervisors, but Lurie said funds would not arrive until 2028 and would not address the imminent budget shortfall. Compromise talks failed before the Feb. 2 deadline, and Lurie said the contested measures prompted him to pursue charter reform to make ballot qualification more difficult.

Read at Mission Local