Angelenos have been taxed enough — but the state wants more

Every year, Angelenos are reminded what it means to pay their share. We file, write checks, and hope the money serves a purpose.

In Los Angeles County, that trust has reached its limits.

When I founded the Los Angeles County Taxpayers Association, my county had been taxed, educated, and managed for so long that many residents had dismissed inefficiency as a fixed feature of life, like traffic or Santa Ana winds.

The political class was relieved of that resignation. We weren’t there.

Paying taxes should be funded by a functioning government, not a red herring — but for Angelenos, it’s become a sign of something far worse: a government that treats every financial crisis as an opportunity to dig deeper into your pocket, with little accountability each time.

The latest clear evidence of that is the untested local tax Measure ULA, the so-called “grand house tax” passed by Los Angeles city voters in 2022.

Supporters have promised to raise up to $1 billion a year for affordable housing by taxing sales of luxury properties. We’ve made about $280 to $350 million a year, less than half of those projections.

Even worse, a study by researchers at Harvard, UC San Diego, and UC Irvine found that between 63 and 138 percent of taxable income is taxed on future lost property.

If you count the forgone property taxes, Measure ULA could generate negative profits for the city.

A tax designed to solve the housing crisis is making it worse. That’s what happens when our government chases revenue without regard to economic reality.

Recently, the LA County Board of Supervisors, by a vote of 4-1, put a new sales tax increase, Measure ER, on the June 2026 ballot – a countywide sales tax that could reach 10.25% in most cities, causing Angelenos to bear the highest tax burden in the nation.

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The county generates an additional revenue of approximately $1 billion annually, which is classified as a general tax and all revenue goes into the general fund.

There are no legally binding restrictions on how the money is spent. There is no independent assessment. No accountability is required. The voice of the Board of Directors is the only guarantee that taxpayers are given.

Angelenos have to ask: where exactly did last year’s taxes go?

Voters aren’t buying it.

A poll conducted in mid-March found that a majority of Los Angeles City voters oppose Measure ER, with 47% opposed and 45% in favor — a remarkable result, given that city voters tend to support tax increases more than county voters as a whole.

This should tell the management something. It tells me that Angelenos have taken ULA courses; of Measure H on homelessness; of the continuous accumulation of levies that promise revolutionary results and deliver costly partial failures.

Affordability is the main concern driving that opposition, and it should be. You can’t ask families who already pay more than ten cents on the dollar and face a cost of living crisis to give another billion dollars a year to the general fund with no strings attached.

The district has legitimate financial pressures. Federal funding cuts are real. But the answer to the property income problem is not a blank check. An honest accounting of where existing revenues are going, commitments that bind to specific programs, and real oversight. If the Board cannot provide that, it should not present the voters with a new tax measure at all.

Angelenos hear that every day. In June, they will have a chance to say enough.

Measure ER deserves a vote, and the voters of this district deserve elected officials they trust before asking for their money.

The pendulum in LA County is swinging, and taxpayers are the ones pulling it the hardest.

Aidan Chao is the Chairman of the Los Angeles Taxpayers Association. He also serves as a consultant or leader on many campaigns and boards in LA.