Not all sales tax revenue remains with the City. California's 6% base state sales tax primarily funds the state's General Fund, which supports education, health care, and criminal justice, while portions also fund a variety of health and safety programs. An additional 1.25% is authorized under the Bradley-Burns Uniform Local Sales and Use Tax Law. Of that 1.25%:

• 1.00% is allocated to counties or incorporated cities for general purposes.
• 0.25% is distributed to county Local Transportation Funds (LTFs) to support transportation programs.
• Sales Tax is imposed on the total retail price of tangible personal property sold at retail within the City.

Use Tax applies to purchases where sales tax is not collected at the point of sale, such as certain online or out-of-area transactions, and is remitted to the appropriate jurisdiction.

If the City Council were to place a sales tax measure on the ballot, it would be structured as a general-purpose tax. Under California law, revenue from a general-purpose tax may be used for broad municipal purposes and requires approval by a simple majority of voters.

“Local control” in this context means that revenue generated within Vacaville would remain in Vacaville and be allocated through the City’s public budget process. Spending decisions would be made by locally elected officials during open and noticed public meetings.

Projections indicate that current revenues will not be enough to maintain current service levels over time. Without additional ongoing revenue, the City would need to reduce services. With new voter-approved revenue, five-year projections indicate that the City would be able to maintain current services and address operational needs.

Central to the City’s consideration of a possible local one-cent sales tax measure are accountability and transparency. A possible sales tax would include strong safeguards to ensure every dollar is transparent, accountable, and locally controlled, including:

• Independent annual financial audits conducted by outside auditors
• Public reporting on revenue collection and expenditures
• Oversight processes designed to monitor the use of funds
• Annual budget adoption during publicly noticed City Council meetings

If presented for voter consideration, a measure could include the establishment of an Independent Citizens’ Oversight Committee composed of Vacaville residents. The committee’s role would be to independently review revenue and expenditure reports and provide public transparency regarding how funds are used.

In addition, financial information would continue to be available through the City’s Open Finance transparency portal, allowing residents to review budget documents, departmental spending, and audit reports.

Together, these mechanisms are intended to provide public visibility into how locally generated revenue is collected, allocated, and reported.