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Council opens public hearings on narrow charter to enable local real‑property transfer tax — outreach and FAQs planned
Summary
Portola Valley staff presented a two‑page draft charter modeled on Saint Helena’s that would authorize the town to adopt a real‑property transfer tax; the council opened the public hearing, asked staff to prepare outreach materials and FAQs and scheduled follow‑up hearings tied to the ballot‑filing timetable.
The Portola Valley Town Council opened a public hearing on a narrowly focused draft town charter that would authorize the town to adopt a local real‑property transfer tax and set the path for a possible voter measure in November 2026.
Town Manager Darcy Smith said the draft was deliberately short and modeled after the charter adopted by the City of Saint Helena. The town’s stated purpose for pursuing a charter is to gain the local authority to enact a transfer tax that would otherwise be unavailable to general‑law municipalities; staff emphasized the draft would not change the town’s form of government, municipal code, public contracting rules or prevailing‑wage requirements.
Smith walked the council through the timeline needed to place a measure on the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot and the outreach steps to be completed before the filing deadline. He said staff will publish an FAQ and maintain a community engagement web page; the council asked staff to consolidate questions and suggested tabling and farmer’s‑market outreach to surface community concerns.
Councilmembers asked clarifying questions about how narrowly the charter should be worded so as not to constrain future policy options; the town attorney advised the council on the interplay between charter and general‑law authority and agreed to consider tightening the charter's opening clauses describing purpose. Staff reiterated that the charter does not itself adopt a tax but would authorize a future measure to be placed before voters.
Why it matters: A charter would provide Portola Valley voters the option to allow a transfer tax that could raise revenue for town priorities. The council emphasized transparency and directed staff to produce clear informational materials for residents.
What’s next: Staff will maintain an FAQ on the town website, prepare outreach materials and return with additional public hearings and proposed final language to meet ballot‑filing deadlines. The council and staff also discussed the need for legal counsel for any CEQA or ballot‑related processes.
