Measure A takes effect today: What it means for Culver City

Like all other cities in Los Angeles County, Culver City saw an increase in its sales tax rate take effect today.

Measure A was a county measure on the November 2024 General Election Ballot that replaces a quarter-cent sales tax, or 0.25%, with a half-cent/0.50% sales tax to help fund homelessness programs and services in Los Angeles County. There is no sunset date for this tax, meaning it would need to be repealed by voters or through state legislation to be discontinued.

As part of the approval of Measure A, the 0.25% tax implemented by 2017's Measure H was repealed. Some cities like Santa Monica did not have to pay into Measure H due to local tax laws, but the legislation that enables Measure A — Assembly Bill 1679 — also allows the tax to cause local rates to exceed state-established limits.

Culver City was not one of those cities exempt from Measure H, which means the sales tax rises by 0.25%. Cities not paying the Measure H tax are seeing their sales tax increase by 0.50% today. With these increases, Measure A is expected to generate over $1 billion annually.

Mayor Dan O'Brien has been publicly critical of the County's handling of Measure H funds, particularly regarding the allocation to Culver City he feels is far less than what the city deserves based on its contribution. Of the money generated from Measure A, 60% of it will be given directly to the County. A minimum of 15% of that chunk — or approximately 9% of the total money generated — is mandated to be funneled back into local governments based on numbers from homelessness point-in-time counts.

However, this money will not come directly from the Measure's revenue. Measure A will funnel money into the recently established Local Solutions Fund (LSF), which will then distribute the funds to individual cities. This Local Solutions Fund "can be tapped by cities and [Councils of Government] to help people move out of encampments and into housing in collaboration with the County." 

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors had a motion on their board meeting agenda today to vote to assume control of the distribution of those funds, but the item was referred back for further consideration. The County has worked to wrestle control from the Los Angeles Housing Services Authority (LAHSA) after a recent audit showed significant issues with tracking and mishandling of the $2.3 billion the agency spends on homelessness programs in the city of Los Angeles.

LAHSA has disputed some of the audit's assertions and encouraged the County to maintain its relationship with the agency. Both the city and County of Los Angeles saw drops in the number of unhoused residents in the 2024 Homelessness Count, but the results from this year are not expected to be available for several months.

Culver City's total sales tax is 10.50% with Measure A taking effect, placing it on the same level as many nearby cities like Hawthorne, Lawndale, and Huntington Park. It remains 0.25% below what cities that did not pay into Measure H, like Santa Monica, Southgate, and Lynwood, are paying today. There are several cities in L.A. County with a sales tax rate below Culver City's, such as Malibu (10.25%), Manhattan Beach (10.25%), Torrance (10.25%), La Mirada (9.75%), and Beverly Hills (9.75%).