Santa Monica property owners would pay $495 a year per parcel to fund local public schools under a ballot measure that cleared a critical signature threshold in early July and now awaits formal placement on the Tuesday, November 3, 2026, General City Election ballot. The tax would replace roughly $12 million in annual city funding that expires when the Master Facilities Use Agreement with the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District runs out on June 30, 2027.

The Los Angeles County Registrar verified 7,711 valid signatures out of 9,083 submitted, surpassing the 7,038 required, according to the Santa Monica Lookout. With that hurdle cleared, the measure goes to the City Council, which must formally place it on the ballot. The Council has not yet scheduled that vote.

The measure needs a two-thirds supermajority to pass.

What it pays for

Revenue from the tax would be restricted to six categories, according to the ballot title and summary filed with the city: teacher retention, assistance to disadvantaged students, art, music, science, and math education, early childhood education programs, maintenance of existing school facilities, and community access to school facilities after hours.

The money cannot go toward administrator salaries, land acquisition, or capital improvements such as new buildings.

Who is exempt

Seniors 65 and older who live in the property as a primary residence would not pay the tax. Neither would nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status, affordable housing developments, or religious organizations and schools already exempt from property taxes. The $495 amount would adjust annually for inflation.

Why it matters now

SMMUSD Chief Operations Officer Carey Upton told the school board that the current MFUA, first negotiated in 2002 and extended in 2012 and 2022, provides funding equivalent to about 73 teachers' salaries and benefits. Without a replacement revenue source, the district faces a structural deficit flagged in its 2025-26 Second Interim Budget, which projects $153.3 million in general fund revenue but warns that one-time funds are running out.

"The Master Facility Use Agreement did not create the practice of community use. But it did formalize it, and it funded around it," Upton said.

Backstory

A group of residents filed a notice of intent to circulate the petition on Friday, January 9, 2026. The campaign organization behind the effort has not been publicly identified. The initiative was submitted hours after a City Council agenda surfaced a separate staff proposal for a $540 parcel tax that would have funded both schools and city services. Staff pulled that item after a poll of Santa Monica voters showed underwhelming support for the higher amount, the Lookout reported.

Santa Monica voters approved Measure QS, a $495 million bond to upgrade SMMUSD school facilities, in November 2024.

Community access guaranteed

The district's board voted 7-0 in May 2026 on Resolution No. 25-66, affirming that community access to athletic fields, gyms, and play areas at schools including John Adams Middle School and Lincoln Middle School will continue regardless of the parcel tax outcome or the MFUA's expiration. Board member Laurie Lieberman, who requested the resolution, said the goal was to reassure residents that facilities would remain available no matter what happens with the funding arrangement.

Oversight and next steps

If approved, the SMMUSD Board of Education would establish an oversight committee and commission independent annual performance audits. Collection would begin July 1, 2027. The General City Election is Tuesday, November 3, 2026.