Why this matters

Addressing San Diego housing shortages has challenged municipal leaders for years.

Critics of a San Diego ballot initiative that would impose steep taxes on second and third homes left empty most of the year are proclaiming success.

Initial unofficial results from Tuesday evening indicated 58 percent opposed Measure A. Numerous further ballots, such as those mailed after June 1 along with in-person votes, require counting over the next several days.

Opponents labeled the idea an assault on affluent residents and a gateway to greater government control over property owners.

"Tonight, San Diego sent a clear message," stated Shane Harris, a local business owner and activist serving as spokesperson for the No on Measure A effort. San Diegans "said 'no' to a tax that was sold as a housing solution but did not guarantee $1 to housing."

Backers of the tax plan stay optimistic, noting the outcome stays undecided.

"Whatever the final number, the fight to make San Diego a place working people can afford has only just started," remarked San Diego Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera, who advanced versions of this idea over the past year. "We're going to count every vote, and we're going to keep going either way."

Opponents spent nine times more than supporters to defeat the measure, per the most recent spending report. At least one No campaign advertisement included an inaccurate statement, as previously noted.

Campaign Cash

Yes on A

Contributions: $102,385

Expenses: $94,883.75

No on A

Contributions: $849,765

Expenses: $862,583.81

Totals as of the latest periodic filings. The numbers do not include contributions or spending after May 16.

The plan would have required an $8,000 tax in the first year starting 2027 and $10,000 annually thereafter. Corporate-owned vacant properties would face a $4,000 extra fee initially and $5,000 each year after. Both the tax and surcharge would rise with inflation from 2029 onward.

Fewer than 1 percent of San Diego homes would face the levy. It focused on owners who skip primary-residence status and avoid renting, leaving units empty over 182 days yearly. Records indicate roughly 5,100 properties meet this standard.

Projected revenue ranged from $9 million to $21 million in year one, though actual amounts hinged on owner responses. It would not address the city's current $140 million budget shortfall.

The debate over taxing owners who deliberately keep non-primary homes vacant amid a housing crunch has split residents recently. This occurs while tight supply sustains high rents and more individuals enter homelessness than exit it.

Breanna Barbier, who cast an in-person ballot in La Jolla, opposed it due to taxation overreach concerns.

"That one was not a difficult one to vote on," Barbier said of Measure A. "It didn't require a ton of research."

Joann Masters, voting downtown in person, found the ballot wording unclear.

"It looked to me like it was punishing people who had rentals," Masters said, "and at one time we had a rental here and I would not have wanted to be charged an extra tax if it weren't occupied."

North Park voters saw it differently. Anwar Hussen argued people must pay their fair share. Jessica Kava supported it immediately upon learning of the idea.

"I don't understand why San Diego is charging residents so much for parking when we could be doing things like taxing secondary homes instead," Kava said.

From the Documenters

This story came in part from San Diego Documenters Alisa Judge, Jennifer Hua, Maya Flores, Alex Blood and KT Devera, who interviewed voters at polling locations across the city. The Documenters program trains and pays community members to document what happens at public meetings.

Type of Content

News: Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.