I've copied the argument below, and also attached it as an MS Word document (according to which it comes in at exactly 300 words).
Please respond with any thoughts/suggestions/feedback!
Love & Liberty,
((( starchild )))
The title of this measure, “Traffic Congestion Mitigation Tax”, is misleading. Proposition X would not tax people for driving in congested areas.
In fact it taxes not drivers, but passengers – anyone who relies on ride-share services like Lyft and Uber anywhere in San Francisco, regardless of whether an area is congested. Even multiple passengers sharing a ride instead of each using a separate form of transportation would be taxed.
By taxing ride-shares, this measure would incentivize people to drive their own vehicles instead of using these services.
With fewer passengers, ride-share drivers will have to work longer hours – i.e. spend more time driving around – in order to get the same number of rides and take home the same amount of money.
In other words, Proposition X will likely increase traffic congestion, not decrease it.
The measure would also let government officials borrow $300 milllion on the assumption they’ll be able to repay the loan with money stolen from people who use rideshares – a dubious assumption since taxes can alter consumer behavior.
If the mayor and Supervisors who put this on the ballot want to reduce congestion, they should start with city-owned vehicles.
A Budget Analysts Office audit in March found many city employees driving these vehicles for personal use. NBC Bay Area reported the airport marketing director being one employee facing questions over taking home a vehicle with “taxpayers footing the bill” (https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Audit-Raises-Questions-About-San-Franciscos-Take-Home-Vehicles-507700881.html).
Government employees also get preferential parking around City Hall for these vehicles, forcing others to spend more time in search of parking.
We get that politicians are sore at ride-sharing because it disrupted their money-making scheme of ripping off taxi drivers by collectively charging them $64 million for now-worthless “medallions”, but Proposition X is bad policy.
We urge you to vote NO.
Libertarian Party of San Francisco
NoOnX (RideShare Tax)-11-19 (71.5 KB)