This November, Bay Area voters will wade through dozens of ballot measures. As usual, SPUR has conducted in-depth analysis and made recommendations on all local measures in San Francisco — and this year we’re endorsing several in San Jose and Oakland, as well as a cross-county measure.
Researching and debating 30 ballot proposals generated a veritable mountain of analysis. To simplify the results, we’ve distilled our recommendations into verse. For your enjoyment, we present #VoterHaiku. (With special thanks to Damian Carroll who pioneered #haikutheprops for California state ballot measures.)
Follow the links below to read our complete analysis and recommendations.
Alameda, Contra Costa and San Francisco Counties
BART packed like sardines.
Trains and tracks are getting old.
Now’s the time: invest.
San Jose
YES ON A: Santa Clara County Housing Bond
Solving homelessness —
not easy, but maybe just
start with building homes.
A calmer commute
for all: roads, bikes, downtown BART.
Just a half-cent more.
YES ON G: Business Tax Modernization
Raise the business tax
so San Jose can invest
in smart policy.
Oakland
YES ON A1: Alameda County Housing Bond
Oakland! We love you!
Let’s build the affordable
housing we all need.
YES ON KK: Oakland Infrastructure Bond
Let’s try to prepare
a sustainable future
as we grow the Town.
San Francisco
Our schools teach our kids.
They’re our future, after all.
So let’s fund them well.
YES ON B: City College Parcel Tax
It’s been rough, but
City College is on the rise.
Help our students thrive!
YES ON C: Housing Loan Program
Rehab housing with
underused earthquake money:
Smart idea — yes.
Political grudge —
not the best reason to
limit mayor's power.
Trees and sidewalks do
a lot for us. The city
should keep them healthy.
Let the youth vote!
They have to live the longest
with our choices.
Yes to independence
for investigators of
police misconduct.
Who are electeds
if not public advocates?
Do we need one more?
Special fund for seniors
but what will it take away from?
Please budget for all!
YES ON J: Dedicating the Prop. K Sales Tax
A city with so much
shouldn’t ignore homelessness
or those who ride the bus.
YES ON K: Sales Tax for Transportation and Homelessness
Why renew this tax?
Homelessness, potholes, Muni.
K funds Prop. J’s dreams.
When have politics
ever made Muni better?
Keep ’em off the bus.
NO ON M: Housing and Development Commission
A bold power grab
designed to keep the mayor
from getting stuff done.
Parents of all types
should be allowed to vote for
SF Board of Ed.
YES ON O: Bayview Office Development
We don’t think Prop. M
was meant to keep jobs away
from poor neighborhoods.
Nonprofits, compete!
When they already have to,
what are we solving?
No Recommendation on Q: Tent Encampments
Tents on the sidewalk:
Nuisance? Necessity?
We’re not sure Q helps.
NO ON R: Neighborhood Crime Unit
This is a good plan
but it does not need a vote.
Keep the ballot clean.
No Recommendation on S: Allocating the Hotel Tax
Money for the arts:
They would get it anyway
but this locks it in.
NO ON T: Lobbyists Gifts and Reporting
Stopping twenty-five-
dollar gifts won’t get money
out of politics.
NO ON U: Affordable Housing Eligibility
Housing: Who is it for?
A good policy question,
but not for the ballot.
One penny per ounce —
a tax on sugary drinks.
Better public health.
Let’s not depend on
a volatile income source
to fund ongoing needs.
NO ON X: Manufacturing and Arts Space
Ballot box zoning
won't actually preserve
jobs or artists’ space.
Read our San Francisco Voter Guide >>
Read our Oakland endorsements >>
Read our San Jose endorsements >>
*Thanks to Noah Christman, Kathryn Exon Smith, Benjamin Grant, Alicia John-Baptiste, Sarah Karlinsky, Alyssa Kies, Susannah Parsons, Karen Steen, Laura Tolkoff, Kristy Wang, Jennifer Warburg and Eli Zigas.