Overview
- Late tallies pushed the yes vote just over 50 percent and prompted supporters to declare victory on Tuesday, but official certification is still pending while thousands of ballots are finalized.
- Measure ER would add a temporary half‑cent countywide sales tax for five years and is projected to raise about $1 billion a year for hospitals, clinics and county health programs.
- The tax would not apply to groceries, prescription drugs or medical equipment and is scheduled to begin Oct. 1 if the election is certified.
- County leaders framed the measure as a last resort to offset roughly $2.5 billion in projected federal Medicaid and funding cuts over three years that they say threaten safety‑net providers.
- The proposal drew opposition from some city leaders, the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association and at least one supervisor over concerns about regressivity and higher local sales rates, and it followed a rejection of a similar tax in Contra Costa County.