A group of Redding community leaders and other stakeholders expect to start collecting signatures soon for a 1 cent sales tax that would pay for the city’s public safety, parks, roads, airport improvements and upgrades at the Rodeo Grounds.
If it gets on the ballot and it passes, the sales tax in Redding would go from 7.25% to 8.25%, generating an extra $30 million in annual revenue, City Manager Barry Tippin estimated.
This is the third attempt to raise the sales tax in Redding to help fund quality of life issues such as public safety.
In the top row from left to right, Redding police officers respond to a crime scene and firefighters combat smoke and flames on Girvan Road. In the bottom row, a sign is show, where a park will be built and cracked pavement is seen near the downtown,
But Measure F in 2014 and Measure D in 2016, a quarter-cent sales tax and half-cent sales tax, respectively, were placed on the ballot by the Redding City Council.
In 2020, Shasta County supervisors placed Measure A on the ballot, a countywide 1-cent sales tax. Voters rejected that measure too.
This latest effort would need a simple majority to pass and it comes as the city is facing an estimated $5 million budget deficit. Revenue generated from sales tax, property taxes and other sources hasn’t for years been enough to keep up with repairs and improvements to streets, buildings, parks and Redding’s two airports, Tippin has told the council.
Who’s behind latest Redding sales tax effort?
Ericka Jones, a third-generation Redding resident, is one of the three proponents who submitted the required paperwork to the city.
Redding realtor Dennis Morgan and Baron Browning, of the Redding Rodeo Association, also signed the title & summary request that was submitted to the city.
“I consider myself a fiscal conservative in so many areas. What would be the cost to us” if the measure did not pass, said Jones, who is married to Redding Chamber of Commerce President Todd Jones. “This is a practical solution that doesn’t just fall on the shoulders of local taxpayers. The cost is also spread over people who are visiting.”
Redding Rancheria CEO Tracy Edwards, among those working to help put the measure on the ballot, said the tribe has supported past sales tax initiatives, including Measure A in 2020.
“We live and work in the community and we are concerned about the shortfalls facing the city,” Edwards said. “We obviously want public safety and all the things the tax initiative is going to support. We generally feel it’s good for the community.”
Tracy Edwards: Redding Rancheria CEO Tracy Edwards talks to several hundred people who gathered Monday, March 17, 2025, for the long-awaited groundbreaking of the proposed Tribal Health Village off Clear Creek Road in south Redding.
How many signatures needed to get on ballot?
City Clerk Sharlene Tipton said proponents will have until Oct. 3 to collect the required signatures, which is 10% of the registered voters in Redding. That means 5,816 voters will have to sign the petition, based on the latest county voter registration report.
“Of course, we recommend gathering 50 percent more to accommodate for those signatures found to not be sufficient,” Tipton wrote in an email to the Record Searchlight.
Browning said if they get enough signatures it would be difficult right now to say when it would appear on the ballot and they do not have a preference. He said the earliest they can start collecting signatures is Saturday.
“I just saw what it did in Anderson and how it really changed the outlook in Anderson,” Browning said when asked why he supports the 1 percent sales tax.
Anderson voters in 2014 passed a non-binding advisory measure that allocated at least half of the measure’s money on public safety, and the balance for park improvements and other general fund needs like restoring reserves and code enforcement. The initiative raised the sales tax in Anderson by a half-cent.
Browning, who is a business owner, served on the Anderson City Council for several years.
Baron Browning
Where the money would be allocated
Annual audits would be done to verify the funds are spent correctly. Too, the city council would appoint people to a citizens advisory committee to provide more oversight.
Here is where the money would go:
Roads: 30% spent on maintenance, repairs and improvements.
Redding Fire Department: 13% allocated to construction and staffing of ninth fire station, upgrades and improvements to the other fire stations, equipment, and at least 3.5% of the fire department’s cut to fire mitigation efforts like fuel reduction.
Redding Police Department: 12% allocated to additional staffing, equipment and facilities.
Shasta County Sheriff’s Office: 12% allocated to address repeat offenders and jail capacity. Browning said the money would specifically go to the new alternative custody campus proposed by Sheriff Michael Johnson. Whether the money goes to the sheriff’s office would hinge on an agreement between the city and Shasta County. If no agreement is reached within two years of voter approval, this portion of the money would go to Redding police.
Parks: 9% spent on construction, improvements and maintenance, including Redding Sports Park, California Soccer Park, South City Park, Caldwell Park and Panorama Park.
Redding Civic Auditorium, Redding Rodeo Grounds: 6% allocated to the former, 3% to the latter.
Redding Regional Airport: 5% allocated toward building an additional terminal, staffing and general operations of all airport facilities.
The citizens advisory committee and public feedback would help the city determine how to spend the remaining 10% of the sales tax revenue.
David Benda covers business, development and anything else that comes up for the USA TODAY Network in Redding. He also writes the weekly “Buzz on the Street” column. He’s part of a team of dedicated reporters that investigate wrongdoing, cover breaking news and tell other stories about your community. Reach him on Twitter @DavidBenda_RS or by phone at 1-530-338-8323. To support and sustain this work, please subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Redding Record Searchlight: Redding leaders behind 2025 sales tax effort come forward