Palm Springs tax rate increase goes into effect
Palm Springs’ sales tax rate increased by 0.5 percent on Sunday, a move approved by voters last Fall.
“I haven’t really noticed any change. It’s, like, half a cent so I don’t think people are going to really notice it unless they’re spending a lot of money,” said Laura Walsh, owner of The Cocky Cactus. “For instance, four postcards are still the same price as they were yesterday.”
Effective April 1, city sales taxes went up from 8.75 to 9.25 percent. The city said that $7 million would be generated annually by the approval of Measure D. It was a measure touted to put more police officers on the streets, improve 911 response times, address homelessness and increase access to mental health and substance abuse treatment programs.
“I went in to Kiehl’s and it’s expensive to begin with and I didn’t even question the price, but then when you mentioned it had gone up I looked at the receipt and sure enough, one and a quarter percent,” resident Derek Evan told KESQ News Channel 3’s and CBS Local 2’s Katie Widner. “We need city services to support it and it has to be funded somehow.”
The measure was approved by 56 percent of Palm Springs voters.
“I don’t think it’s necessary. They should find another way to implement that,” said part-time resident Mike Israel.
“I think the real question is weather or not the funding goes where they’re stating that it’s going to go,” said his wife Jillian. “That’s a pretty common theme that we see- that they pass some bills and they get extra funds and the funds don’t go where thy say they’re going to go.”
In January, the city announced that Measure D’s passage allowed Palm Springs to hire a dozen additional public safety officers, including six firefighter paramedics, four downtown police officers and two police community service officers.
“With the passage of Measure D in November, Palm Springs is now able to increase our safety services,” City Manager David Ready said in January.
“This is very good news and the city of Palm Springs would like to thank our residents for their continued support.”
Supporters said that despite the increase — which puts Palm Springs among the highest sales tax rates in the county — the city’s penchant for attracting tourists would generate the bulk of revenues. Opponents said the tax increase was just another among many recently implemented measures they believed proved ineffective in improving emergency services or homelessness solutions.
The average sales tax across the county is 7.75 percent, according to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration, which noted that the Palm Springs increase was the only Riverside County increase set to take effect in April.
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