Press Release: Assembly Bill 3259 Enacted, Enabling Benicia to Receive Revenue for Road Repair (Measure F), If Passed by Voters

Assembly Bill 3259 Enacted, Enabling Benicia to Receive Revenue for Road Repair (Measure F), If Passed by Voters

On September 28, 2024, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 3259, enabling the Benicia citizens’ initiative, Measure F, to be implemented if passed by voters at the November 5, 2024 election.

AB 3259 increased the sales tax cap rate in Solano County by an additional half cent, raising the cap from 9.25% to 9.75%.

Measure F, also known as the save our streets citizens’ initiative, is a specific purpose half-of-a-cent sales tax (0.5%) for road repair. If passed by voters in the November 2024 election, Benicia would generate approximately $4 million annually to invest in road repair.

To raise the Solano County sales tax rate cap, the City of Benicia worked with Assembly Member Wilson’s office and Solano County cities to create legislation so the initiative could go into effect.

“This is truly a historic achievement for Benicia,” said Benicia City Manager Mario Giuliani. “The condition of our road system necessitated bold and aggressive action; to ensure that voters would have the opportunity to vote on Measure F this November and not in 2026. AB 3259 needed an ‘urgency’ clause, requiring passage by super majorities in both the State Assembly and State Senate. Assemblymember Wilson was able to secure 2/3 vote in both houses, culminating with the Governor’s signature on Saturday.”

Benicia road conditions are rated at a score of 54 out of 100, which is considered “At Risk to Fair”. The ideal score for all roads is 70-100, or “Good to Excellent.” Due to a lack of sufficient funding, the number of “Good to Excellent” roads is decreasing while the “At Risk to Fair,” “Poor” and “Failed to Very Poor” roads are increasing. To learn more about Benicia’s roads, visit BeniciaRoads.org.

To learn more about the AB 3259, visit https://legiscan.com/CA/bill/AB3259/2023.

To learn more about Measure F, Benicia specific purpose sales tax for streets, visit BeniciaMeasuresFGH.com.