Pleasanton council places phased hotel‑tax increase on November ballot

The Pleasanton City Council voted unanimously on July 7 to place a phased increase in the city’s transient‑occupancy tax (hotel tax) on the Nov. 3, 2026, ballot.

Assistant to the city manager Aron Zavala told the council the proposal would raise the current 8% tax to 10% on July 1, 2027, and to 12% on July 1, 2028, producing an estimated $1.4 million at the 10% rate and about $2.8 million annually at the full 12% rate. Zavala said the revenue is intended to be a visitor‑funded step toward closing a multi‑million‑dollar structural general‑fund deficit.

The council had previously reviewed rate scenarios and community survey data; Zavala said the substance of the measure and the phased rate were decided in June and that the July 7 action was the formal step to place the measure on the ballot and direct related administrative steps, including asking the city attorney for an impartial analysis.

The measure is a general tax that staff said would require only a simple‑majority vote of the electorate. Zavala also asked the council to authorize filing a primary written argument in favor of the measure and to form a two‑member ad hoc subcommittee to draft the city’s official argument and any rebuttal; the subcommittee will ensure argument deadlines are met in August if the council approves them.

Councilmembers asked clarifying questions about the size of the city’s structural deficit and the share the hotel tax would cover. Staff said the full 12% would cover roughly one‑third of the current projected structural deficit (reported in the staff presentation as in the neighborhood of $7–$8 million). Council members who spoke said the measure is one of several actions the city must take—alongside cost reductions and economic vitality work—to stabilize the budget.

After public comment (none on item 9), Councilmember Nyberg moved to adopt the resolution placing the measure on the ballot; the motion was seconded and passed unanimously. The council also unanimously authorized the ad hoc subcommittee to draft the primary city argument in favor of the measure.

The council directed staff to have the city attorney prepare the impartial analysis (due August 5 under the timeline cited by staff) and noted the schedule for argument filings: primary arguments due by Aug. 13 and rebuttals by Aug. 20. If adopted by voters, the phased increases would take effect July 1, 2027 and July 1, 2028.

The council did not adopt any specific spending plan for the revenue at this meeting; staff described the measure as a general tax to support general city services. The city will publish the adopted ordinance and ballot materials and post the impartial analysis once prepared.