City of South Gate Measure SG (Los Angeles County)

What it does

SOUTH GATE FISCAL EMERGENCY STREET MAINTENANCE, YOUTH PROGRAMS, PARKS FUNDING PROTECTION MEASURE. Shall an ordinance preventing cuts to City of South Gate services including maintaining streets and sidewalks; maintaining school crossing guards, parks/ recreation programs, police 911 and support services, and other General Fund uses by establishing an 8% utility user tax, exempting low income seniors, annually providing approximately $10,400,000 until ended by voters; requiring independent audits, public disclosure of all spending, local control, to benefit South Gate residents, be adopted?

A YES vote means

South Gate would set an 8% utility users tax, exempting low-income seniors, raising about $10,400,000 a year for streets, crossing guards, parks, police and other services until ended by voters.

A NO vote means

South Gate would not set this 8% utility users tax.

Needed to pass

A simple majority: more than half of the YES and NO votes on this measure must be YES. Leaving it blank doesn't count either way.

Left–right lean

Unclear: our AI read of the official summary isn't confident enough (we require 70%) to place this on the left–right spectrum, so we don't. Read the summary and decide for yourself.

The YES and NO lines are SpectrumVote's plain-language reading of the official text above; the official text is what you vote on.

Official text: source

Background

The City of South Gate describes Measure SG as a proposed utility users tax (UUT) on electricity, gas, water, sewer, cable and telephone services, collected through utility bills; the city says it is among the few cities in Los Angeles County without such a tax.

According to the city, it faces an ongoing structural budget gap of about $9 million driven largely by pension, health insurance, workers' compensation and liability costs, with federal relief funds and reserves nearly exhausted; the City Council declared a fiscal emergency in January 2026.

The city says it considered a parcel tax, a business license tax increase and a higher hotel tax before choosing a UUT, and that low-income residents 65 and older who meet income limits could be fully exempt.

Put on the ballot by South Gate City Council, 2026 (after a January 2026 fiscal emergency declaration; resolution date and vote not found online).

From official source.

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Quick answers

What does a YES vote on City of South Gate Measure SG mean?

South Gate would set an 8% utility users tax, exempting low-income seniors, raising about $10,400,000 a year for streets, crossing guards, parks, police and other services until ended by voters.

What does a NO vote on City of South Gate Measure SG mean?

South Gate would not set this 8% utility users tax.

How many votes does City of South Gate Measure SG need to pass?

A simple majority: more than half of the YES and NO votes on this measure must be YES. Leaving it blank doesn't count either way.

Should I vote yes or no on City of South Gate Measure SG?

SpectrumVote doesn't endorse anyone or tell you how to vote. Read what a YES and a NO vote each do, and the official text, then decide based on what you want to happen.

When is the vote?

The general election was Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Counts are unofficial until each state certifies its results over the following weeks; your state or county election office has the official results.