Fresno COG outlines Measure C renewal, highlights $66.8 million returned to Parlier since 2006

Robert Phipps, executive director of the Fresno Council of Governments, told the Parlier City Council on June 19 that the region has begun public outreach for a proposed renewal of Measure C, the Fresno County transportation sales tax, ahead of a likely 2026 ballot. The presentation explained how the measure — first passed in 1986 and last proposed in 2022 — funds local streets and larger regional projects and helps leverage state and federal grants.

Phipps said Measure C is not a new tax but a renewal of a decades-old sales tax program. He told the council the measure has produced about $2 billion locally over its lifetime and helped leverage roughly $8 billion in state and federal matching funds for road and transit projects. "The formula has been to use Measure C dollars up front and then turn to grant programs at the state and federal level," Phipps said.

Phipps noted the 2022 renewal effort received roughly 58% voter approval but fell short of the two-thirds threshold required for that type of expenditure plan. He said the new effort is in the early, "blank slate" stage: a steering committee is working on four questions — the length of the measure, the revenue allocation by category, the revenue allocation among agencies, and oversight and accountability. "We're asking the people what they want the measure to look like," Phipps said.

Council members and staff pressed for local outreach. Phipps said the renewal project is using a multimodal outreach program — a measurec2026.com renewal website, virtual workshops, community workshops in several cities, door‑to‑door canvassing in Parlier (about 1,300 households contacted so far), Spanish‑language focus groups and pop‑up booths at community events. He described an online tool that lets residents divide a hypothetical budget among four major categories: local streets and roads, public transit, active transportation (bicycle/pedestrian), and regional capital projects.

Parlier Mayor Alma Beltran and council members emphasized the importance of local street maintenance funding for smaller cities, saying those jurisdictions lack bonding capacity and depend on Measure C and its matching leverage. Phipps highlighted that on the current measure Parlier itself has received $66,800,000 since the 2006 renewal in categories that included Manning Avenue improvements, Safe Routes to Schools work at local elementary schools, ADA curb upgrades, pavement striping and lighting. He also said the Fresno County Rural Transit Agency receives Measure C funds that support transit service to Parlier.

Phipps said, on average, Measure C costs households about $8 per month but that about 25% of revenue is paid by nonresidents who visit or pass through Fresno County. He asked the council to direct constituents to the website to record priorities and invited the council to request a dedicated workshop or a booth at local events such as National Night Out.

Why this matters: Measure C revenue supports immediate maintenance needs and is often used as local match to unlock larger state and federal construction grants. For small cities such as Parlier, losing Measure C funding would put both street maintenance and transit subsidies at risk, Phipps said.