Union City voters will decide on Nov. 3 whether to keep paying a 5% tax on their phone, cell, video, electricity and gas bills for nine more years. Measure II, the Union City Essential Services Extension Measure, would extend the city's utility users tax, first approved by voters in 2020, from its current end date of Dec. 31, 2028, to Dec. 31, 2037. The rate would stay at 5%. The city says the tax brings in about $7 million a year, and the measure needs a simple majority. For every other November contest, see our Nov. 3, 2026 Bay Area election guide.

What Measure II does

According to the impartial analysis by the city attorney, filed with the Alameda County Registrar of Voters, the tax applies to telecommunications (both landlines and cell phones), video service no matter what technology or programming it uses, and electricity and gas. It is calculated on what each provider charges for the service, so it shows up as a line on residents' and businesses' utility bills.

Measure II does not raise the rate or add new services to the tax. It only extends the expiration date. Residents 70 and older and low-income residents of any age, including people enrolled in PG&E's CARE discount program, could still apply for an exemption. An independent auditor would keep reviewing collections and spending every year, and the results would be public.

Where the money goes

Measure II is a general tax, so the roughly $7 million a year goes into the city's budget and can pay for any lawful city purpose. The ballot question lists 911 emergency response, paramedics, fire protection, street and pothole repair, neighborhood police patrols, crime and gun violence prevention, and youth and senior programs. The city says the money must be spent in Union City and can't be taken by the state.

The city says that if the tax expires, Union City, home to nearly 70,000 people across about 19 square miles, would lose about $7 million a year and "would have to consider cuts to city services." The city's Measure II page also lists public disclosure of spending, annual reports and an independent oversight committee as safeguards that would continue.

How it got on the ballot

The City Council voted 5 to 0 on July 14 to place the extension on the November ballot. That puts the question to voters about two years before the current tax runs out.

What a yes or no vote means

  • Yes: The 5% utility users tax keeps going at the same rate through Dec. 31, 2037, with the senior and low-income exemptions still in place.
  • No: The tax stays in place for now and ends after Dec. 31, 2028.

The official arguments for and against are in the Alameda County voter information guide. The city expects results to be certified in December.