Calabasas council directs staff to prepare fiscal-emergency resolution, outreach and polling on possible 0.75¢ or 1¢ local sales tax

City Council members and staff spent a special study session on Oct. 6, 2025, examining options to close a projected structural deficit and directed staff to prepare next steps — including a possible fiscal-emergency resolution, a public survey and a community-outreach plan — to determine whether to place a local sales tax measure before voters.

City Manager Kendan Meek and CFO Ron Ahlers told the council the city’s sales tax currently provides roughly 25% of general fund revenue and that, under a base-case 10-year forecast, the city faces a growing structural deficit if no new revenue is added. "Our sales tax comprises about 25% of our general fund revenues," Kendan Meek said, adding that amount equals "about $7,800,000" for the fiscal year.

Staff presented two modeled options: a 0.75¢ local transaction-and-use add-on to raise roughly $4,000,000 annually, or a 1¢ add-on to raise about $5,300,000, and outlined an implementation timeline that could place a measure on the November 2026 ballot or accelerate it to June 2026 if the council unanimously declares a fiscal emergency. "If the voters were to approve a 3 quarter cent local add-on tax, that would be about $4,000,000 in new revenues," Meek said. He added that a 1¢ add-on would produce larger revenue and both scenarios were modeled in the ten-year forecast.

Council members questioned allocation and methodology. Council member David Shapiro asked whether the city’s share would change if the council added a cent; staff confirmed the city would capture the add-on locally. Members also pressed the consultant’s finding that "57%" of sales tax revenues come from nonresidents; staff and the consultant said the estimate is based on vendor receipts, quarter-by-quarter sales and comparisons with similar cities and offered to share the detailed HDL report with the council.

During the public-comment period, residents raised distributional concerns and alternatives. Matthew Shevy cautioned that taxes "have a way of never going away" and urged the council to consider higher user fees for facilities such as the tennis and swim club before asking voters for a sales tax. Other speakers asked for wider surveys, more outreach and study of cross-border shopping to nearby cities if Calabasas raises its rate.

Council members debated timing and level of the tax. Several members said they favor placing an item on the June 2026 primary if the city can meet the procedural deadlines by declaring a fiscal emergency, which the city attorney said requires a unanimous council finding. Some council members signaled support for the 1¢ option to more fully close the gap, while others preferred testing voter appetite for 0.75¢ first through polling.

The council’s near-term direction was procedural: prepare a clear fiscal-emergency resolution outlining the structural deficit and actions taken to control costs; commission statistically valid polling that compares 0.75¢ and 1¢ options and asks about June vs. November timing; and develop an extensive outreach plan targeting HOAs, community groups and residents. The mayor summarized the instruction as asking staff to prepare a resolution to declare a fiscal emergency (if appropriate), run a survey, and return with outreach and timeline recommendations for council action.

The council did not place a measure on the ballot at the Oct. 6 meeting. Next procedural steps identified by council and staff include drafting the fiscal-emergency resolution, approving polling and outreach contracts, and returning to the council in February 2026 with findings and a recommended ballot date.

What’s next: staff will prepare the fiscal-emergency resolution and polling contracts and return to the council for formal votes before the deadline to qualify for a June 2026 consolidated election, should the council choose that path.