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San Francisco committee debates 1.5% tech payroll tax as residents and business groups weigh in
Summary
The Budget and Finance Committee heard hours of testimony Aug. 1 on a proposed 1.5% payroll tax on large technology companies to fund affordable housing and homeless services; sponsors estimate $120–$140 million annually, opponents warned of job loss, and the committee ultimately tabled the measure for further consideration.
Supervisor Mark Farrell, chair of the Board of Supervisors' Budget and Finance Committee, described the proposed ordinance to send a 1.5% special payroll tax on technology companies to the Nov. 8 ballot as "one of the most misguided proposals" he had seen and warned it could cost jobs and further divide the city. The ordinance, sponsored by Supervisor Marr, would reduce a small-business registration fee for firms with $1 million or less in receipts and impose a targeted payroll tax on certain technology employers to fund affordable housing and homeless services.
Sponsor Supervisor Marr told the committee the "homelessness and housing impact tech tax" is aimed at large, multibillion-dollar companies and would generate "$120 to potentially over…
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