Early returns Tuesday night, June 2, show LA County’s Measure ER trailing—about 54% against to 46% in favor—after a campaign aimed at backfilling federal cuts that could force clinic and hospital closures. The measure would add a half-cent sales tax, raising $
When the first vote tally landed around 8:37 p.m. on Tuesday, June 2, it carried a clear warning sign for Measure ER. Early returns released that night by the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder’s Office showed the measure losing, with about 54% of votes against and 46% in favor.
The tally was based on vote-by-mail ballots returned before Election Day, according to the Registrar-Recorder’s Office. Measure ER was placed on the ballot by the Board of Supervisors. and it asks voters to approve a half-percent sales tax increase meant to help stave off the effects of federal cuts that could hit county healthcare facilities—up to and including the risk of some clinics and even hospitals closing.
If Measure ER is approved. it would raise $1 billion annually to pay for clinics. workers and nonprofit entities that provide healthcare services administered by LA County. The measure is led by Second District L.A. County Supervisor Holly Mitchell and is supported by a coalition of clinics, labor unions and physician groups.
At a rally in Venice, Jim Mangia, president and CEO of St. John’s Community Health, led a group of clinics and healthcare workers known as the Restore Healthcare for Angelenos coalition. The coalition was campaigning for a sales tax measure that would raise backfill dollars in LA County cut by H.R. 1.
The sales tax increase would feed money into the county’s general fund for five years. and it sunsets in October 2031. The Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 to place the measure on the ballot. The allocation plan directs revenue primarily to nonprofit health care providers and county health departments and hospitals. while also sending funds to Planned Parenthood and city health care departments in Pasadena and Long Beach.
To pass, Measure ER needs 50% of the vote plus one. But it also faces a legal math problem at the tax-rate level. Besides a majority requirement, the measure needs a law that would allow the county to exceed a 2% tax rate cap. The county tax rate is 7.25%.
Under the rules described in the measure’s framework. multiple sales taxes—also referred to as district taxes—can exist within a county. issued by a county. city or local district. or by a combination of those entities. Even so, the combined tax rates can’t add up to more than 2%. Any additional tax that would cause a county to exceed that 2% cap requires permission from the state.
That permission route became part of the timeline on Monday, June 1, when Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1768 into law. The bill would grant LA County permission to implement Measure ER should voters approve it.
As the early returns show Measure ER still behind Tuesday night—about 54% against versus 46% in favor—the vote isn’t just about a half-cent tax. It’s also about whether the county will be able to translate a $1 billion annual backfill plan into the five-year funding stream laid out for clinics. workers and the nonprofits and departments meant to keep county healthcare services steady.
Measure ER LA County election results sales tax half-cent tax healthcare clinics hospitals federal cuts Holly Mitchell Jim Mangia Restore Healthcare for Angelenos H.R. 1 Assembly Bill 1768 Gavin Newsom