The Facts

Prop D would sharply raise an existing San Francisco gross receipts tax starting in 2027. That means it taxes sales attributed to San Francisco, not profits, and for most affected companies the rate would jump by about 800%. These higher costs will mostly be passed on to consumers and reflected in higher grocery, pharmacy, food, and retail prices.

This so-called "CEO tax" doesn't actually tax CEOs - it taxes your groceries.

The Context

Businesses with low margins, like grocery stores, pharmacies, and retailers, will be impacted the hardest. The food retail industry’s average net profit margin was just 1.6% in 2023, according to FMI, so a tax on total sales hits especially hard. This will be the fifth time since 2018 a ballot measure altered the gross receipts tax. 2018's effort caused Stripe and other employers to leave the city. 2024's Proposition M fixed a number of problems with 2018's version, but 2026's Prop D will bring the problems back and make the rates even more punitive.

The GrowSF Take

GrowSF recommends voting no on Prop D. San Francisco should not make groceries, household basics, and other everyday purchases more expensive with a large new tax on sales.

And we MUST stop screwing around with taxes at the ballot box so much. Tax policy is complicated and both businesses and individuals need stable and predictable tax policy in order to plan their own lives and investments. Thrashing rates up by 800% doesn't serve anyone's interests, it just makes San Francisco harder to exist in.