Proponents cited an inaccurate $1.5 Billion loss figure the Board of Supervisors already corrected — an error first identified by the Contra Costa Taxpayers Association (CoCoTax).
MARTINEZ, CA — A petition for writ of mandate and preliminary injunction filed on behalf of two registered Contra Costa voters is expected to be heard today (Monday) in Contra Costa County Superior Court, Department 34. It challenges multiple false and misleading statements in the official ballot arguments supporting Measure B, a proposed five-year, 0.625% countywide sales-tax increase on the June 2, 2026 ballot.
A copy of the filing:. Minor v. Connelly-Petition for Writ of Mandate and Complaint-March 27 2026
The lawsuit, Minor v. Connelly, alleges that proponents of Measure B — including members of the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors — submitted ballot arguments containing a series of verifiably false claims designed to alarm voters, thereby to draw their support for the tax measure.
One of the most striking allegations involves a projected funding-loss figure which CoCoTax found, reviewed, and then exposed as incorrect — a problem which county officials themselves then subsequently admitted.
At the Board of Supervisors meeting on March 3, 2026, at which Measure B was placed on the ballot, Supervisor Candace Andersen herself flagged the previously claimed $307 million “annual” healthcare funding-loss figure as inaccurate, observing that in fact it was a cumulative figure through FY28-29.
The Board then formally adopted a corrected resolution projecting cumulative losses of approximately “$239 million” (actually $219 million) through 2029. The County’s budget presentation from that same meeting, extending the time frame, then projected a five-year cumulative funding impact (through FY30-31) of $509 million.
The proponents’ ballot argument, however, claims that “our health system will lose more than $1.5 billion over the next five years” — three times the figure presented on March 3rd.
Measure B projects initial collection of $150 million in its first year, which would generate at least $750 million (likely much more, given the Measure X experience) over Measure B’s five year run, still considerably more than the projected $509 million deficiency.
Once again, “CoCoTax has done the math, and the numbers simply didn’t fit,” said Mike Arata, Executive Committee member of the Contra Costa Taxpayers Association. “It appears that proponents further extended an incorrect figure the Board itself corrected in real time and then used the inaccurate number ($307 million, now x 5) anyway to frighten voters. That is the kind of objectively false statement that California election law prohibits in official ballot materials.”
The petition further challenges proponents’ sweeping claims that Measure B “will keep the Contra Costa County Medical Center open,” and that the tax “exempts food, housing, and medical care.”
[2020’s Measure X (a 0.500% sales-tax increase with a 20-year run) was supposed to fund the Contra Costa Regional Medical Center. It did initially, but now (with 15 more years to run) Measure X funds are being used for a wide variety of other purposes.]
And in fact, restaurant foods and prepared hot meals from groceries are subject to sales taxes. Housing construction materials and fixtures themselves are burdened with sales taxes. Medical care can include taxable over-the-counter medications and dressings,
The petitioners are seeking an expedited court hearing; they ask the court to order correction or deletion of the challenged statements before the County Voter Information Guide is printed and mailed to voters.
Related
- Feb 10 – Board of Supervisors Agree to Ask Voters to Backfill Federal Cuts With Sales Tax Measure
- Feb 10 – Letter: Contra Costa Taxpayers Association Questions Legality of County-Wide Sales Tax
- Feb 9 – HR 1 Response: Contra Costa County Could See Sales Tax Ask on June Ballot
- Jan 20 – Contra Costa County Supervisors Agree to Move Forward With Sales Tax Effort
- Jan 5 – Contra Costa Health: Most Recent Federal and State Updates
- Nov 2025 – Contra Costa County Set to Be Impacted by HR1 and State budget
