Santa Barbara finance committee forwards staff budget options, backs cannabis tax increase and polling for ballot measures

The Santa Barbara City Finance Committee on Oct. 21 voted to send staff’s general fund multiyear forecast and a tiered list of more than 200 recommended revenue and expenditure options to the full City Council, and asked staff to begin polling on possible voter measures for 2026.

City finance director Keith DeMartini told the committee the briefing was intended to recap last week’s presentation and to ask for committee direction on how to prioritize options to help balance the budget, noting “pressures on our revenues and how our expenses continue to rise” and that recently adopted memoranda of understanding for public safety bargaining units exceed the assumptions in the adopted budget.

Why it matters: staff presented a forecast showing general fund pressure from flat sales-tax receipts and lower-than-expected transient-occupancy-tax (TOT) revenues, alongside higher personnel costs. The committee’s direction will shape what the City Council considers in fall and next year as staff refines revenue estimates and implementation details.

What the committee decided and directed

- The committee voted unanimously to forward staff’s packet — including the general fund multiyear forecast and the attachment listing staff’s recommended options (tiered as near-term, medium- and longer-term) — to City Council with the committee’s feedback and priorities. The motion passed without opposition.

- Committee members also asked the city administrator to pursue public polling on a set of potential ballot measures and revenue options so the council has voter-testing information well ahead of the November 2026 regular municipal election. Committee members discussed, but did not vote formally on, other near-term administrative steps such as an ordinance to raise the local cannabis tax rate toward the voter-authorized maximum.

Major…