Choices
Ballot Question
Proposition 5: Voter threshold for public infrastructure and housing bonds
Proposition 5 would lower the voter approval threshold for local government general obligation bonds to fund public infrastructure and affordable housing projects from the current 2/3 requirement to 55%, aligning it with the threshold used for school bonds. Projects that could be funded through Prop 5’s lower threshold include: • Transportation infrastructure, including streets, roads and public transit. • Local government facilities, including police and fire, public health, libraries and parks. • Utilities, including water and wastewater, flood protection, and broadband expansion. • Disaster recovery and resilience, including wildfire resilience, emergency response, interoperable communication systems, and sea-level rise infrastructure. • Affordable housing, including low- and middle-income housing, seniors, veterans, people with disabilities, first-time homebuyers. Bonds approved through Prop 5’s lower threshold must be used for one-time capital expenses and cannot fund ongoing operations. Proposition 5 also mandates specific oversight activities, including independent audits and citizens' oversight committees to monitor the use of funds. Initially introduced as Assembly Constitutional Amendment (ACA) 1 in 2023, the measure was amended in June 2024 to ACA 10 to narrow the scope of what taxes were allowable, and improve its chances of passing. ACA 10 removed ACA 1's provisions that extended the 55% threshold to special taxes (including parcel taxes), keeping the 2/3 requirement for those taxes. If passed, Proposition 5 would impact both future and current bond campaigns, including those concurrently on the November 5 ballot. In Marin, the Town of Fairfax has proposed an ad valorem property tax bond to fund local road improvements, which would benefit from the lower voter approval threshold if the measure passes. Additionally, a future regional Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA) measure to support affordable housing would also benefit from the reduced threshold.