Former Councilwoman Olsen serving as chairwoman of Modesto sales tax campaign

Kristin Olsen — a former Modesto councilwoman, Stanislaus County supervisor and Republican leader in the state Assembly — is chairwoman of the campaign in support of the 1% city sales tax on the November ballot.

If approved by voters, Measure H would bring in an estimated $39 million annually to Modesto’s $171 million general fund. About 80% of the fund is spent on public safety. The campaign to pass the tax is not a city government effort.

The general fund is supported by sales, property and other taxes. Modesto officials say the fund never has fully recovered from the Great Recession of more than a decade ago, leading to ongoing structural deficits. The city has balanced the fund through such measures as freezing or eliminating open positions, deferring maintenance and reducing services.

City Manager Joe Lopez has said that Modesto cannot provide the level of services that residents expect and deserve and that without more revenue the city faces more reductions in future years, with the brunt in public safety.

Olsen said she is a fiscal conservative and has a history as an elected official of cutting waste and finding efficiencies. But she said Modesto has made deep cuts over the last decade to balance its budget.

For instance, Olsen said when she served on the City Council, Modesto had 1.3 officers per 1,000 residents, and the goal was to increase that to 1.8 officers per 1,000 residents. Olsen said the city now has 0.9 officers per 1,000 residents. (She served on the council from 2005 to 2010.)

The Modesto Police Department is budgeted 210 sworn officers, from the police chief to the newest officer. It once was budgeted 287 officers. She also noted Modesto has more than $70 million in deferred maintenance in its parks.

“Things like that are not OK,” Olsen said. “... Modesto needs revenue help. ... At some point, there is only so much cutting you can do.”

Modesto is seeking a general sales tax, which requires 50% of the vote plus one to pass. If approved, the tax has no end date. It would take another vote to do that.

Council was unanimous

The City Council voted 6-0 to put the tax measure on the Nov. 8 ballot at its June 28 meeting.

The city hired a polling firm this year to gauge support for a potential sales tax. A random sample conducted in late March of 1,117 registered voters likely to vote in the November election showed an initial 65% support for a 1% sales tax.

Support dropped to 60% after voters heard arguments against the tax, including that residents already pay too much in taxes and now is not the time to raise taxes as they cope with the pandemic and inflation.

“The timing is a challenge,” Olsen said. “But I don’t believe we can afford to wait.”

Modesto’s general fund revenues have grown, but not as fast as the fund’s expenses, which are primarily for employee compensation, including pensions. Modesto belongs to the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, and like other CalPERS cities, it has seen its pension costs spike.

But city officials also say Modesto has a lower sales tax rate than many cities of similar size (the city’s tax rate is 7.875%), a less robust local economy, and suffers from a state formula that does not provide it with adequate property tax revenue.

The ballot measure says the sales tax would pay for general city services, such as police patrols, crime prevention, fire protection, addressing homelessness, blight reduction and keeping parks clean, safe and well-maintained. But Modesto could spent the tax on any of the services its provides.

But the ordinance for the tax calls for the City Council to establish a nine-member community oversight board to review how the tax is spent and to make public reports to the council. The committee also would hold public meetings. Olsen said that is a critical component of the sales tax measure.

Olsen lives in Modesto and is no longer an elected official. She is a partner with California Strategies, which describes itself on its website as “a full-service public affairs consulting firm.”

Campaign may raise $300K

Olsen expects the Measure H campaign will raise $200,000 to $300,000 to get its message out. But Olsen said she expects about half of that will come from the private sector. She said that is an unusually high amount and indicative of the broad-based support for the tax measure.

Olsen said she is serving as the volunteer chairwoman of the Committee for a Better Modesto 2022 Measure H and will not be paid.

Olsen said Measure H will be a traditional campaign, including presentations to community groups, mailers and social media. But she said it also will have a grass-roots component.

The campaign is putting together a community committee of what it hopes to be at least 50 people who represent Modesto’s neighborhoods, community groups, business communities and the rest of the city. The committee members would meet monthly and help get the message out about the tax to their constituencies.

Political consultants Mike Lynch and Megan Belair are the Measure H campaign’s consultants. Lynch said Measure H’s supporters include Mayor Sue Zwahlen, Councilman David Wright and former Mayor Jim Ridenour. (Zwahlen and Wright can campaign for the tax on their own time and not in their official capacities as elected officials.)

Lynch and Olsen said they are not aware of any organized opposition to Measure H.