Why Increase the Sales Tax?

Folsom’s Measure G – the proposed 1% special sales tax rate on taxable goods – would put Folsom on par with most other cities in the region at an overall sales tax rate of 8.75%. And Measure G applies to both online shopping and in-store purchases, so the city does not lose sales tax revenue due to online shopping.

Measure G keeps all the revenue in Folsom to support essential city services. Under the current base rate, Folsom receives one cent per dollar (1%) in sales at brick-and-mortar stores BUT online sales only generate approximately 25% of that one cent per each dollar spent.

If you spend $15,000 on taxable goods in Folsom in one year, the total extra cost to a family is $150 or about $12.50 a month. This measure only applies to taxable goods which does NOT include groceries, prescriptions, and services.

Please consider the consequences if we fail to make the necessary investments in our city’s services and infrastructure. Park maintenance has already been reduced. The city still has fewer police officers than it did in 2008. The main fire station has a vacant truck bay – the only one in the county.

The opportunity for Folsom to take care of Folsom will not come before us in the near future, and we will have lost so much in the meantime.  Like our home, if you don’t make a repair, it gets more costly when you finally fix what’s broken.