Live entertainment, dunk tank and fireworks will happen

Activities begin at 6:00 p.m.

By City of Antioch

After announcing earlier Tuesday, July 2, 2024, that the annual July 4th “parade and festivities are moving forward as planned” as of 6:05 p.m., the City of Antioch changed course and issued cancelled the parade and issued the following announcement:

The City of Antioch is cancelling the Independence Day Parade because of forecasted hot weather. The US National Weather Service San Francisco Bay Area/Monterey California issued an excessive heat warning and heat advisory that will remain in effect until July 9th at 11:00 p.m.

The remainder of the event will start at 6:00 p.m. in historic Rivertown. Families can enjoy rides and games along with our dunk tank fundraiser in the Kids Zone, music by Universal Soul and Foreverland, and Food Truck Thursdays by the Foodie Crew, followed by our spectacular fireworks show over the Delta at 9:15 p.m.

Thank you to our community for your patience. Please stay cool and be safe this 4th of July!”

The National Weather Service for the San Francisco Bay Area/Monterey California issued the following Tuesday afternoon:

“An Excessive Heat Warning and a Heat Advisory is in effect now until 11 PM NEXT Tuesday. San Francisco will be under a Heat Advisory now until 7 PM Thursday. High temperatures in the upper 90s to near 110 are expected in the Excessive Heat Warning, while highs from the lower 80s to mid-90s are expected within the Heat Advisory. In addition, limited overnight cooling is expected for areas away from the immediate coast and in higher terrain. Never leave people or pets in vehicles! Limit outdoor activities during the afternoon and evening. Stay hydrated and take cooling breaks.”

As previously reported, two cooling centers plus, hydrating and misting stations in Rivertown will be provided during the celebration.

·Cooling Centers: City Hall and the Nick Rodriguez Community Center will be open as cooling centers during the event.

·Misting Stations: Stay refreshed with misting stations located throughout festivity locations.

·Hydration Stations: Free water stations will be available to keep you hydrated throughout the day.

For total of $278.83 billion, Antioch has 5th greatest amount of 19 cities with about 6% of total

“…the highest to date in Contra Costa County’s history” – Gus Kramer, County Assessor

Antioch had 3rd highest increase in assessed value at almost 5% mainly due to new homes

By Office of the Contra Costa County Assessor

The “2024-2025” Assessor’s “Close of Roll Affidavit” was signed by Gus S. Kramer, Assessor, and subscribed and sworn to the County Clerk-Recorder’s Office, on June 28, 2024. The 2024-2025 Assessment Roll has been delivered to the County Auditor, as required by law.

The increase to the local tax base for 2024-2025 is over $11.16 billion. This represents a 4.17% increase in assessed value and brings the total net local assessment roll to more than $278.83 billion. The 2024-2025 assessment roll is the highest to date in Contra Costa County’s history. Of that amount $233.28 billion was from within the 19 cities and the balance within the unincorporated areas of the county.

Cities with the largest increases in assessed value include Antioch, Oakley and Martinez with increases ranging from 4.99% and 5.21% to 6.09%, respectively. San Ramon, Concord and Walnut Creek saw the lowest assessed value increases ranging from 2.97% down to 1.45%. The assessment roll now consists of 380,681 parcels, an increase of 1,239 over the previous year.

Of the 19 cities in the county San Ramon has the greatest Gross Assessed Value, which includes both secured and non-secured at $28.63 billion, followed by Walnut Creek at $27.13 billion, Concord with $23.64 billion, Richmond with $21.42 billion, Danville with $18.13 billion and Antioch with $16.72 billion in assessed value.

“I would like to acknowledge and commend the employees of the Assessor’s Office for their continued dedication and hard work which resulted in the completion and delivery of the 2024-2025 assessment roll,” Kramer wrote in his annual letter to the Board of Supervisors.

His letter and the 2024-2025 Assessment Roll Reports can be found, here.

School board isn’t properly overseeing their one employee, have exposed district to lawsuits, while majority of students are underachieving in math, reading and science

The last performance evaluation for Superintendent Anello was over four years ago

By Allen D. Payton

There sure seems to be a whole lot of bullying and accusations of it going on in the Antioch Unified School District, lately.

First, there were accusations of bullying by employees against a supervisor in the maintenance department over the placement of an extra desk on a roof saying that was his new office, which was investigated and determined to be a prank – over a year prior.

Then that employee and others complained to one Bay Area TV reporter because they weren’t happy with the results of the internal investigation, and bullied District staff until that supervisor was placed on paid leave (which he’s still on) and more investigations were conducted (for which we’re still waiting for the results).

Then ASUD Board President Antonio Hernandez chose to go to the media with private personnel information and bullied Superintendent Stephanie Anello calling for her resignation. That’s because he chose to follow the lead of the complaining employees, siding with them and blaming her for not handling the situation properly, because she and her husband are friends with that department supervisor. That’s even though she had nothing to do with that supervisor’s hiring, nor does he answer to her in the District’s chain of command.

Then members of the public and the leader of the local union for the school district classified employees, California School Employees Association (CSEA) Chapter 85 followed Hernandez’s lead and bullied Anello and her entire district leadership. Chapter president Brian Atkinson announced at the May 8, 2024, school board meeting that “The executive board of our chapter took a vote of no-confidence for the cabinet.” However, whether that vote ever occurred has come into question and has yet to be confirmed. (See related articles here and here and 1:56:00 mark of the May 8 school board meeting video)

Then, during last Wednesday’s board meeting, the audience accused Area 5 Trustee Mary Rocha of bullying Hernandez by calling for his censure, which was the appropriate action to take, which is basically a public spanking or hand slapping. (They could not vote to remove him from the board. The most they could have done was vote to remove him from his position as president).

Finally, the audience were the bullies by disrupting the school board meeting, including while Area 4 Trustee Gary Hack was trying to speak on the matter and shouting down the 86-year-old Rocha, literally and surprisingly calling her a racist for challenging her fellow Hispanic board member’s behavior.

Wrong Message Sent and Lesson Taught

What Hernandez and the other three board members did, sadly, was send the wrong message to current and future board members and the students they’re supposed to be elected to help acquire an education was that the ends justify the means. First, it was done by the board president repeatedly violating the rules, this year, and then what the audience did during the most recent board meeting. While Hack and Area 3 Trustee Dr. Clyde Lewis spoke on one side of the issue, that there is a proper process that must be followed, they wimped out and voted the opposite way by not supporting the censure. Worse, Hernandez defended and doubled down on his actions instead of being just a little bit humble and admitting he could have handled things differently and better, and Area 2 Trustee Dr. Jag Lathan’s defense of his inappropriate actions, as well.

Is that really the lessons we want students in the district to learn? Violate the rules, then raise their voices and defend their actions, stomp their feet, yell, call out, be disrespectful and disruptive, and worse call people with whom they disagree names and label those people racist until they get their way? That’s called childish behavior, and while we might expect it from young children, it is not the appropriate manner to get things accomplished for any student in the district and certainly not adults, including parents and others who were in the audience Wednesday night.

That may be how things are done in the big cities, but this isn’t San Francisco, Oakland or Berkeley and it shouldn’t be the way to get things done in Antioch.

Hernandez blew things out of proportion and has been merely grandstanding at the expense of Anello, thinking and hoping he finally had an issue he could use to bully her into resigning or get her fired, as he’s been trying to do since the month after he took his seat on the board in December 2020. Worse, he did so at the district’s expense. His actions have exposed the district to lawsuits from her and the maintenance department supervisor. With the board’s failure to censure Hernandez this past Wednesday night for his clear violations of board policy and bylaws, they’ve made the matter worse and have further exposed the district to those lawsuits.

While it’s doubtful Anello will sue as she will continue to keep her job, if she wants it, at least until the new board is seated following the elections in November and wouldn’t want to end her career, that way, it’s more likely the maintenance department supervisor might file a lawsuit which will cost and waste taxpayers’ money.

I expected and still expect more out of Hernandez. He’s a bright young man and could have learned from this situation, taken his lumps and proper discipline Rocha attempted to mete out, and let it be a learning experience for him, current and future board members and the district’s students. I also expected and expect more out of Lathan who claimed it was “oppression and White supremacy” for Rocha attempting to properly discipline the board president, especially when they’re both Hispanic. How utterly ridiculous, completely baseless and we all know she knows that. Our local officials must not be so divisive, knock off the race baiting and hateful rhetoric and set a higher standard and better example for the students. Frankly, the other board members should have called her out for saying such a thing and condemned it. As I’ve told elected officials in the past, I tell them all, now – do better, be better.

You Had One Job! Board Not Managing Their Only Employee

As they saying and online meme goes, “You had one job!” when people mess up big time while at work. It applies to the school board as they have only one employee who they hire and answers to them, the district superintendent. As I told Hernandez at one of the high school graduations, recently, they have every right to terminate her or whomever holds the position. But they haven’t followed the proper process and procedure by providing Anello with proper oversight and have repeatedly proven they can’t handle that simple task which is supposed to be conducted only once each year.

That’s because Hernandez hasn’t done what’s required to even evaluate Anello properly, much less have grounds for her termination. Nor have the other four board members. Yet, that is literally their number one job. They’re part-time policy makers and it’s the full-time professional employees including the superintendent and district staff leaders who answer to her, that are supposed to be following and carrying out the board’s directions. But the board hasn’t properly provided it.

The last time the superintendent was evaluated was over four years ago in 2020, when Diane Gibson-Gray was board president. So, during Ellie Householder’s term as president from 2020-21, followed by Hack’s presidency in 2021-22, then Lewis’ term as president from 2022-23 and this year under Hernandez’ leadership, the board has failed to evaluate Anello each year because they never gave her goals to work on, which is what’s needed to measure her performance for the evaluation.

Seriously, how tough can that be? When I was on the Antioch City Council – and I was the youngest council member in the county when I was first elected – we had two employees who answered to us and for whom we provided annual performance evaluations: the city manager and city attorney. I had never done one previously for a public employee, but I learned real quick in my first year how it’s done. The council members with greater tenure showed this new member, what to do, including meeting with the two top city employees to provide the necessary guidance and goals, then typing up the evaluations. Only a council member could do that because due to proper personnel procedure, no other city employee could do it so they wouldn’t see what the council included in those written evaluations. Why can’t the school board do the same for their one employee? Why can’t at least three of them agree on the goals to give to the superintendent each year? Is it really that difficult? Of course not.

While Lewis made an effort, last year, by having the board bring in a paid outside consultant to help them develop the list of goals to give to Anello, they never completed that task. Yet, as was pointed out during last Wednesday’s meeting by NAACP East County Branch Vice President Dr. Kimberly Payton, the board has continued to give annual pay raises to the superintendent. On what basis can they claim she’s earned them?

Even without providing her an evaluation, Hernandez and Lathan attempted to terminate Anello’s contract in May which failed on a 2-3 vote, as it should have. Plus, Hernandez has continued to place on Closed Session meeting agendas Anello’s performance evaluation, even while she’s been on paid leave, knowing she wouldn’t be in attendance and before providing her the board’s goals by which to measure her performance. So, it was all for show knowing nothing could be accomplished.

All this while the majority of students in the district are underachieving in math, reading and science especially Black and Hispanic students, which is where the Board’s focus should be. That’s what’s most disappointing – all the game playing, political posturing, trying to please certain people instead of one, doing their job to properly oversee their only employee, and two, working to improve the education of our district’s students. Talk is cheap and all of it has added up to little to no progress. Yet, Hernandez, Lathan and others want to blame Anello. She’s not at the top. They are, and as the old Romanian saying goes, the fish rots from the head down.

So, this November, hopefully, we can begin cutting out that rot. Lewis isn’t running for reelection, and rumors are Hernandez, who represents Area 1, is going to run for City Clerk – now that Householder, the incumbent, has fallen out of favor with his and her former political ally, the mayor, after she publicly exposed, opposed and distanced herself from him following the settlement of the sexual harassment lawsuit against him in 2022 (and who I believe has matured, grown into and proven herself in her current elected position since then, and I’d be willing to support her for re-election). So, there will be one or two new board members elected in those trustee areas.

Frankly, Hack shouldn’t run again as he failed during his presidency to do what was necessary to properly oversee the board’s one employee, failed worse this past week when he let Hernandez off the hook and the worst due to the abysmal test scores of the district’s students. If you’re too tired to fight the necessary battles and do what’s right with the authority and responsibility given to you, it’s time to move on.

So, perhaps we will be able to elect three new board members who can demonstrate the ability to properly manage their one employee and actually put the students and their education first.

One more thing on who we elect to local office: let’s make sure they can demonstrate the necessary maturity, not still be in school getting their education, have the time to devote to the position, not use it for political grandstanding purposes nor trying to implement a hidden political agenda, and are willing to take on the role of boss to one employee – give her goals and then evaluate her performance based on them, and most importantly make improving the education of our district’s students their true top priority.

The bottom line is we all oppose bullying among students, so it shouldn’t be occurring or allowed among the adults, especially those in leadership in the Antioch Unified School District. Everyone needs to be mature, respectful and good examples to the students in how they behave, follow the rules and treat others. Perhaps placing signs like the one above throughout the district including in the Board Room might help as a reminder.

4 PM “parade and festivities are moving forward as planned”

City will offer options to beat the heat

By Allen Payton

In a post on its Facebook page today, Tuesday, July 2, 2024, the City of Antioch wrote, “We’re excited to celebrate Independence Day with you this year. Despite the expected high temperatures, our July 4th parade and festivities are moving forward as planned.

That’s in spite of the temperature forecast of 104 degrees that day.

The post continued, “Your safety is our priority. City of Antioch Recreation Department will offer additional resources to help you beat the heat:

·Cooling Centers: City Hall and the Nick Rodriguez Community Center will be open as cooling centers during the event. (See related article)

·Misting Stations: Stay refreshed with misting stations located throughout festivity locations.

·Hydration Stations: Free water stations will be available to keep you hydrated throughout the day.”

For more information about the parade, live entertainment, dunk tank, fireworks and more visit Celebrate
America’s 248th Independence Day on July 4th in Antioch.

Marijuana tax proceeds given to law enforcement agencies, crime labs & nonprofits

Three Contra Costa agencies benefit

By Synthia Ramirez, CHP Media Relations

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The California Highway Patrol (CHP) announced today more than $25 million in grant funding to 102 California law enforcement agencies, crime laboratories, local government agencies, and nonprofit organizations to help address the dangers of driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.

The grants are the result of Proposition 64, the Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act, which tasked the CHP with administering grants for education, prevention, and enforcement programs to help communities combat impaired driving. Money is also available to crime laboratories conducting forensic toxicology testing. Funding for the grants comes from a tax on the sale of cannabis and cannabis products sold in California.

“The substantial increase in the amount of grant funds being dispersed this year to even more recipients will help make California’s roadways safer for all who use them,” said CHP Commissioner Sean Duryee. “The funds will be allocated to enhance traffic safety by educating the public about the dangers of impaired driving, conducting enforcement operations to remove impaired drivers from the roads, and advancing research on this critical issue.”

Eighty-two recipients of law enforcement grants will use funds to address impaired driving within their communities. In addition to traditional impaired driving enforcement, funds will also be used for drug recognition evaluator training to enhance their respective agency’s ability to detect drug-impaired drivers. Additionally, funding will allow for public outreach campaigns, including educational presentations and community events.

Listed below are the law enforcement grant recipients for state fiscal year 2024-2025, which begins July 1:

1. Angels Camp Police
2. Arroyo Grande Police Department
3. Auburn Police Department
4. Azusa Police Department
5. Baldwin Park Police Department
6. Barstow Police Department
7. Bell Gardens Police Department
8. Berkeley Police Department
9. Brawley Police Department
10. Brea Police Department
11. Burbank Police Department
12. Calexico Police Department
13. Calistoga Police Department
14. Chula Vista Police Department
15. Citrus Heights Police Department
16. City of Corona Police Department
17. City of El Monte Police Department
18. City of Fullerton Police Department
19. City of Glendale Police Department
20. City of Huron Police Department
21. City of Lodi Police Department
22. City of Montebello Police Department
23. City of Palo Alto Police Department
24. City of Visalia Police Department
25. Claremont Police Department
26. Covina Police Department
27. Danville Police Department
28. Dixon Police Department
29. Dublin Police Services
30. El Cajon Police Department
31. El Centro Police Department
32. El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office
33. Emeryville Police Department
34. Folsom Police Department
35. Galt Police Department
36. Garden Grove Police Department
37. Gilroy Police Department
38. Greenfield Police Department
39. Grover Beach Police Department
40. Hanford Police Department
41. Hayward Police Department
42. Huntington Beach Police Department
43. Imperial County Sheriff’s Office
44. Irvine Police Department
45. La Habra Police Department
46. La Mesa Police Department
47. La Palma Police Department
48. Lakeport Police Department
49. Lincoln Police Department
50. Los Angeles Police Department
51. Manteca Police Department
52. Marysville Police Department
53. Menifee Police Department
54. Modoc County Sheriff’s Office
55. Montebello School Police
56. Monterey Park Police Department
57. Morgan Hill Police Department
58. Napa Police Department
59. Oceanside Police Department
60. Oakland Police Department
61. Ontario Police Department
62. Orange Police Department
63. Oxnard Police Department
64. Pacifica Police Department
65. Petaluma Police Department
66. Pismo Beach Police Department
67. Pittsburg Police Department
68. Riverside Police Department
69. Rocklin Police Department
70. San Bruno Police Department
71. San Diego Police Department
72. San Fernando Police Department
73. San Gabriel Police Department
74. San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office
75. Shasta County Sheriff’s Office
76. Sierra Madre Police Department
77. Simi Valley Police Department
78. Soledad Police Department
79. Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department
80. Sutter County Sheriff’s Office
81. Union City Police Department
82. Wheatland Police Department

Nine recipients of education grants will use funds to teach local communities about impaired driving laws, while highlighting the dangers of driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.

Below are the education grant recipients for state fiscal year 2024-2025:

1. Amador County Sheriff’s Office
2. Chino Police Department
3. City of Lancaster
4. City of Long Beach
5. County of Solano-District Attorney’s Office
6. Imperial County Sheriff’s Office
7. Sacramento County District Attorney Laboratory of Forensic Services
8. Solano County Office of Education
9. Tulare County Office of Education

Eight recipients of two-year toxicology crime laboratory grants will use funds to eliminate backlogs in the analysis of forensic science evidence and to purchase and/or upgrade laboratory equipment to improve testing capabilities.

Below are the toxicology crime laboratory grant recipients for state fiscal years 2024-2026:

1. Contra Costa County, Office of the Sheriff, Forensic Services Division
2. Imperial County Sheriff’s Office
3. Oakland Police Department Crime Lab
4. Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, City and County of San Francisco
5. Orange County (CA) Crime Laboratory
6. San Diego County Sheriff’s Department
7. Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office
8. Ventura County Forensic Services Bureau

Three recipients of two-year toxicology medical examiners/coroner’s office grants will use funds to help improve and advance the data collection in cases involving driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.

Below is the medical examiners/coroner’s office grant recipient for state fiscal year 2024-2026:

1. Imperial County Sheriff’s Office
2. Orange County Sheriff’s Department Coroner’s Division
3. San Diego Medical Examiner Department

The application process for future grant funding is expected to open again in early 2025. Additional information is available on the CHP website, at CHP’s Cannabis Tax Fund Grant Program.

The mission of the California Highway Patrol is to provide safety, service, and security.

By Antioch Police Department

On Monday, July 1, 2024, Officer Smith and his K9 partner, “Kona”, were providing extra patrol to the Slatten Ranch shopping center hoping to deter would-be criminals from victimizing the businesses in the area.

While in the area, Officer Smith heard the distinct sounds of a vehicle spinning donuts behind the Best Buy store. Officer Smith was able to locate the vehicle mid-donut and put a halt to the reckless behavior. The driver was arrested, and his vehicle was impounded for 30 days!

#CopsDontLoveDonuts

“We hope that this free adoption fee event will help…find new homes for the plethora of wonderful pets in our care.” – Acting Animal Services Manager Cat Cottle

Antioch Animal Services is excited to announce that we are participating in BISSELL Pet Foundation’s Summer National Empty the Shelters™ reduced-fee adoption event, taking place from July 8th to July 31st. This event aims to find loving homes for deserving pets by offering reduced adoption fees and promoting pet adoptions. As the nation’s largest funded adoption event, Empty the Shelters has helped more than 253,000 pets find loving homes. During each nationwide event, BISSELL Pet Foundation sponsors reduced adoption fees of $50 or less to make adoption affordable for prospective pet owners.

• Antioch Animal Services will participate July 8-31 offering $0 adoption fees for all dogs and cats.
• Our business hours are Tuesday – Saturday, 10am to 5pm
• All pets are listed at 24petconnect.com, and are spayed/neutered, microchipped & vaccinated
• Walk ins are welcome, appointments will get priority, phone lines open at 830am, (925) 779-6989

“Shelters are struggling with a variety of challenges right now – some are evacuating pets because of wildfires, tornadoes, or even loss of air conditioning in extreme heat, and others are overcrowded and having to euthanize highly adoptable pets to make space, a tragic situation,” said Cathy Bissell, Founder of BISSELL Pet Foundation. “BISSELL Pet Foundation’s upcoming Summer National Empty the Shelters event is a crucial opportunity for people to make a real difference in their community through adoption. Every single adoption saves a life and creates space to save another. Please adopt and give a pet a chance it might otherwise not have. If you can’t adopt, fostering saves lives when shelters are full. Deserving pets across the country are counting on all of us.”

Following are key points and additional facts about BISSELL Pet Foundation and Antioch Animal Services:

• Empty the Shelters is the nation’s largest funded adoption event and has helped more than 233,000 pets find homes
• across the country and in Canada since its inception in 2016.
• Empty the Shelters provides reduced adoption fees at shelters, typically ranging from $0 to $50 per animal adoption.
• Each participating organization has their own adoption process and requirements.
• Our nation’s shelters need your support. Please consider fostering or donating if you unable to add a pet to your family.
• Antioch Animal Services has been a party of the Bissell Empty the Shelters™ event since 2016.
• All of our adoptable pets are listed at 24petconnect.com, filter by zip code 94509.

“Our little shelter by the Delta is not escaping the effects of the rising cost of living, the increased cost of veterinary care and the restrictions placed on rentals / leases that require hefty deposits or don’t allow any pets to live in them and so, we have many owners requesting surrender of their pets or not coming to get them if they have come in as stray,” said Acting Animal Services Manager Cat Cottle. “With 4th of July fast approaching we know we will be seeing a spike in the number of stray animals that get loose after being spooked by the fireworks and so we will be waiving redemption fees for anyone’s pet that arrives at Antioch Animal Services between July 2nd and July 7th.”  

“We hope that this free adoption fee event will help alleviate the overcrowding we have been experiencing and find new homes for the plethora of wonderful pets in our care,” she added.

Antioch Animal Services is located at 300 L Street next to the Antioch Police Facility in historic, downtown Antioch. For more information visit www.antiochca.gov/police/animal-services.

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

State’s excise tax on gasoline increased July 1 from 57.9 to 59.6 cents per gallon and from 44.1 to 45.4 cents per gallon for diesel fuel.

No end in the law to annual increases based on state CPI

By Allen D. Payton

If you’re not already aware, the State of California gas tax increased today, July 1, 2024 according to the announcement in May by the Department of Tax and Fee Assessment (CDTFA). According to that notice as reported by the California Taxpayers Association, the state’s excise tax* on gasoline increased today “from 57.9 cents per gallon to 59.6 cents per gallon and from 44.1 cents per gallon to 45.4 cents per gallon for diesel fuel.”

According to the California Transportation Commission, “the Legislature passed and the Governor signed SB 1 (Beall, 2017)…increasing transportation funding and instituting much-needed reforms. SB 1 provides the first significant, stable, and on-going increase in state transportation funding in more than two decades.”

Contra Costa’s representatives at that time split on the bill, with then-Assemblyman Jim Frazier, who was chairman of the Assembly Transportation Committee, and Assemblyman Tim Grayson voting in favor, and State Senator Steve Glazer voting against.

As of Monday, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA), which updates prices daily, drivers in Contra Costa County are paying an average of $4.869 per gallon of regular unleaded gas, while today’s Bay Area average is $4.943, California’s average is $4.794 and the national average is $3.491 per gallon.

Taxes & Fees in the Price for a Gallon of Gas

According to data from the California Energy Commission, drivers are now paying 90 cents in taxes per gallon of gas:

• $0.596 on state excise tax
• $0.184 on the federal excise tax
• $0.10 cents on more state and local sales taxes
• $0.02 for a state underground storage tank fee

Plus, $0.51 for state environmental programs fee for a total of $1.41 in taxes and fees per gallon of gas.

But why does the state gas tax keep increasing each year? It’s due to the passage of a bill in 2017, not a vote of the people, as some folks misremember. According to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), State Senate Bill 1 (SB1) entitled the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017, “was passed by a two-thirds majority in the California Legislature and signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown in 2017. As the largest transportation investment in California history, SB 1 is expected to raise $52.4 billion for transportation investments statewide over the next decade.” It marked “the first increase in the state excise tax on gasoline since 1994.”

It requires the CDTFA to annually adjust the rate by the increase in the California Consumer Price Index (CPI) which is as calculated by the Department of Finance (CDFI). According to the CADFI, the CPI “measures price changes in goods and services purchased by urban consumers.  The all urban consumer (CPI-U) represents the spending patterns of the majority of the population which includes professionals, the self-employed, the poor, the unemployed, and retired people, as well as urban wage earners and clerical workers (CPI-W).  The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) compiles and publishes the CPI for the Los Angeles area monthly, the Riverside area bimonthly, San Diego County bimonthly, the San Francisco area bimonthly, and the nation each month.  A California CPI is calculated…as a population-weighted average of the BLS-published local area CPIs. The California CPI formula was developed by the California Department of Industrial Relations (CADIR).”

According to the CDIR, the CPI “Is a measure of the average change over time in the prices paid by urban consumers for a fixed market basket of goods and services. The CPI provides a way to compare what this market basket of goods and services costs this month with what the same market basket cost, say, a month or year ago.” This year, the California CIP was determined to be 3.3% in February and 3.8% in April.

History of Recent CA Gas Tax Increases

In addition, according to details provided by the CDTFA, “*Effective July 1, 2010, under the Fuel Tax Swap Law, purchases and sales of gasoline are exempt from the state portion of the sales and use tax rate (then 6 percent), and a corresponding increase in the excise tax rate on that gasoline was imposed.” Then, “Effective November 1, 2017, Senate Bill 1 imposed an additional $0.12-per-gallon gasoline tax.” Finally, “Effective July 1, 2020, Senate Bill 1…requires CDTFA to annually adjust the rate by the increase in the California Consumer Price Index.”

Proposed Use of Funds

The majority of the revenue from the state gas tax is intended for “Local Street and Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation” at $1.5 billion per year over 10 years and $1.9 billion for “State Highway Maintenance and Rehabilitation.”

Also, according to the MTC, “In the Bay Area, most of this money will be directed to cities, counties and public transit agencies to tackle the enormous backlog of maintenance and repairs for local streets, roads and transit systems. SB 1 money also will be available for new projects, including bicycle and pedestrian improvements.”

Asked if the law sunsets and the annual increases end or if they continue indefinitely a staff member for CDTFA responded, “CDTFA is required by law to adjust the motor vehicle fuel and diesel fuel excise tax rates annually based on the California Consumer Price Index as calculated by the Department of Finance.  SB1 did not include a sunset date.”

For additional information on SB1 see the answers by the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) to the Frequently Asked Questions, here and by the California State Controller’s Office, here.