A ballot measure that would have made it easier to finance affordable housing and other public projects in California has failed.
Proposition 5 was trailing 56% to 44% as of Friday afternoon, a 1.3-million vote margin, according to tallies from the Secretary of State’s office.
The measure would have decreased the approval threshold for local bonds from two-thirds to 55%. Backers said it was necessary to help build low-income housing, expand roads and transit, renovate parks and construct other public infrastructure.
Results from prior elections showed dozens of local bond measures that exceeded 55% support but failed to reach the required two-thirds majority, meaning that Proposition 5 could have led to a flood of new projects.
But opponents argued that the tax increases that would have resulted from easier approvals were too expensive.
“Proponents of Proposition 5 asserted repeatedly that their measure was not a tax increase, but simply ‘asking the question’ to see if voters wanted to ease the vote requirement for raising taxes,” said the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn., a main opponent of Proposition 5, in a statement. “That question has now been answered.”
Supporters of the measure, a group of housing, local government, union and other advocates, acknowledged its defeat Friday.
“The fight to address California’s housing crisis and infrastructure needs is far from over,” the Yes on 5 campaign said in a statement. “California needs to take serious, transformative action to build more housing that is affordable and improve critical infrastructure in our communities.”