Vote NO on Prop D

PROP D: “CEO Tax” Changes to Business Tax Based on Comparison of Top Executive’s Pay to Employees’ Pay

How it landed on the ballot: Prop D reached the ballot through the citizen initiative process. StandUp for SF took charge of collecting signatures and is backed by SEIU, United Educators of San Francisco, San Francisco Building & Construction Trades Council, UFCW Local 648, and other labor groups.

Bottom Line: Prop D will significantly increase San Francisco’s “Top Executive Pay Tax” beginning in 2027, changes how the pay ratio is calculated (to include worldwide employees, not just SF employees, which means more companies will be paying the tax), and makes it much harder for the Board of Supervisors to decrease it later. At a time when big companies are still evaluating long-term office commitments, adding volatility and locking in high tax rates without flexibility is risky and unwise. VOTE NO.

WHY NO ON PROP D?

The Progressive camp and the measure authors from SEIU are not at all happy that Prop M blunted the corporate fleecing that Prop L (2020) provided, and they have hatched this new plan to try and compel companies to leave San Francisco.

Worse yet, Prop D would mean a significant increase in the Overpaid CEO tax, far beyond what was approved in 2020 and then subsequently lowered by voters in 2024.

Prop D is a no-brainer NO vote because:

While it may be fashionable to say that big companies need to “pay their fair share,” the reality is that San Francisco’s overconcentration on a small tax base of large companies increases fiscal instability. Furthermore, national and international companies are highly mobile and can easily move offices and headquarters out of the area. We cannot afford to give crucial tax-revenue-generating companies further reason to avoid doing business in San Francisco.

Supporters of this measure claim that a "NO" vote on Prop D will “protect the city’s wealthiest people” and that you will be choosing “greed” over “care.” Prop D does not in any way impact CEO pay, and the tax money raised would not go specifically to healthcare or any other program. Rather, it would go to the general fund, and we have no idea where that would end up.

Cooler heads must prevail. “Let’s Go, San Francisco!” is a meaningless phrase if voters don’t make decisions that actually allow San Francisco’s businesses to prosper. And, yes, that means even the big companies that pay their CEOs well.

Final note: The ease with which tax-related measures can be put on the ballot creates an unstable tax and regulatory environment for businesses and residents alike. Mayor Lurie is looking to change that in November.