The Brief

In 2022, the Los Angeles electorate voted to slap the sale of mansions and other high-value real estate deals across the city with a hefty tax.

Locals have been debating Measure ULA ever since. Supporters call it a vital lifeline for the city’s unhoused and housing insecure who stand to benefit from the hundreds of millions of dollars the initiative has already raked in. Critics call it an economic own-goal that has choked off new apartment construction in a city where new housing is in excruciatingly short supply.

That debate is about to go statewide.

The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, a low tax advocacy group, is currently gathering signatures to put a measure on California's November 2026 ballot. A central part of their pitch: No more Measure ULAs.

The proposed constitutional amendment takes aim at two types of taxation common across California:

• Transfer taxes on the sale of real estate. The measure would cap rates at a little more than one-twentieth of one percent of the value of the property. Los Angeles' highest rate is one hundred-times higher.

• Local tax measures put on the ballot by voter-backed campaigns (as opposed those put there by city councils) that are earmarked for a particular purpose. The tax-capping proposal would raise the electoral support needed to pass these types of “special” tax measures to two-thirds, up from a simple majority of more than 50%. 

Municipal governments across the state stand to lose billions of dollars (with taxpayers standing to save just as much) if the measure ultimately succeeds. Voter-proposed tax hikes have been approved by simple majorities in cities and counties across California. Transfer tax hikes have also been a popular funding source for certain local governments.

Measure ULA, which 58% of Los Angeles voters backed in 2022, happens to be both. The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association and its political allies appear happy to make it the face of the statewide campaign.

Putting a lid on both citizen-initiated tax measures and high transfer taxes “is something that we have always had as a priority,” said Rob Lapsely, president of the California Business Roundtable, a coalition that has yet to take a formal position on the measure but which backed an earlier version. “The question was, ‘can we actually find the right opportunity?’”

“And then suddenly, along came Measure ULA.”

The fight over the “mansion tax”

The City of Los Angeles’ measure was sold to voters as a “mansion tax,” because it sticks new, elevated transfer fee rates on only the highest value sales: 4% on properties between $5 million and $10 million and 5.5% for those above that. Those numbers have inched up with inflation. All sales below those thresholds are taxed at roughly half of 1%.

Since going into effect in 2023, the measure has raised some $830 million for affordable housing construction, subsidies for cash-strapped renters and legal assistance for tenants facing eviction. It is by far the largest single contributor to the city’s overall homelessness spending.

But ULA has its critics. Not just a tax on mansions, the high rates apply to commercial, industrial and multifamily residential projects too, including land sales for new apartment developments. Apartment construction has indeed slowed to a crawl across the city in recent years and developers and researchers have laid at least some of the blame on the city’s high transfer taxes which they argue has driven new construction down further than in surrounding cities. One report by researchers at UCLA and the Rand Institute estimated that the measure has resulted in 1,910 fewer apartments per year, including 168 fewer affordable units. Another study by researchers at Harvard, UC Irvine and UC San Diego, found that property tax collections fell steeply as a result of the dramatic slow down in sales, off-setting an estimated 63% of the collect transfer tax revenue, if not significantly more.

Backers of the mansion tax have taken issue with the UCLA study in particular. They also note that the program is currently accepting applications for its first major distribution of funds, with plans to push nearly $400 million out the door, which could ultimately ramp up affordable housing development across the city.

But there’s growing concern, both in Los Angeles and among Democrats in Sacramento, that ULA as it currently exists has become a political vulnerability — and one that could fuel the campaign behind the statewide tax busting measure.

“Measure ULA is the tail wagging the dog,” said Mott Smith, a developer and board member of the California Infill Builders Association who co-authored another study that found a chilling effect on the housing market. “Anyone with assets in Los Angeles is like, ‘please where can I send my check to Howard Jarvis?’”

In the final days of the California Legislative session, Mayor Karen Bass and former Assembly Speaker Bob Hertzberg tried to hammer a grand bargain into state law. Senate Bill 423 would have exempted certain new residential developments from the tax, offering a reprieve to many multifamily housing developers. It would have also given the city more flexibility to renegotiate affordability requirements on housing projects funded by the measure, addressing concerns by some developers and financiers that ULA cash comes with too many strings attached to be of use.

The bill would have also exempted homes destroyed in the recent wildfires.

But there was a catch: The ULA tweak would only go into effect if the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association pulls its ballot measure or it fails to qualify for the ballot.

All of that ultimately proved too complicated, contentious and of questionable legality to ram through the Legislature in the final days of the session. Long Beach Sen. Lena Gonzalez and Inglewood Assemblymember Tina McKinnor, both Democrats, vowed to pick it up again in January.

But that may be too late to neuter the anti-tax campaign. The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association is already gathering signatures and raising funds.

“This was an attempt to cut us off early in the process, but since we’re moving forward I think the attempt to leverage this is not going to prevail,” Jon Coupal, the association’s president. “Their opportunity to ambush us is now over.”

That’s given local government groups billions of reasons to worry. Along with making it more challenging to raise revenue in the future, cities with existing high transfer taxes would see them slashed. Parcel taxes currently on the books that were approved by majorities of less than two-thirds would be similarly nixed.

Cities would lose between $2 billion and $3 billion each year if the measure becomes law, according to an analysis commissioned by the League of California Cities, a lobbying group. That includes hundreds of millions of dollars in foregone funding dedicated for new housing and homelessness services in Los Angeles and Santa Monica. But it also includes hundreds of millions more for cities that don’t use these transfer dollars for new, specific purposes and projects, but simply to top up their budgets.

The City of Berkeley, for example, stands to lose between $33 million and $63 million, according to the League’s analysis. That’s the equivalent of between 15% to 30% of the town’s general fund.

California’s favorite fight

Californians have been having some version of this fight for nearly half a century.

In 1978, voters passed Proposition 13, which capped property taxes and put strict limits on local and state governments’ ability to raise revenue. Defending, rolling back and revising those limits in court battles and subsequent state ballot measure campaigns is now a storied California political tradition.

The latest chapter begins in 2017 when the California Supreme Court ruled in a case against the southern California city of Upland that citizen-initiated special tax measures only need to get more than 50% of the vote to pass. Up until that point it was presumed that the required threshold was the much more electorally formidable two-thirds.

Since then cities and counties have passed two dozen of these measures by margins of less than two-thirds. That includes taxes on parcels, sales and gross receipts that have been used to fund local schools, parks, street repairs and housing and that have been put on the ballot by homeless advocates, environmentalists and organized labor groups. It also includes Measure ULA.

And since then, business groups have been clambering to close the “Upland loophole.”

“This is now the vehicle for unions and others to be able to try and pass new taxes on targeted business sectors using a majority vote,” said Lapsely. “That only hurts job growth.”

Over that same period some cities have also turned to transfer taxes as a new source of revenue. It’s a fiscal avenue only available to a select number of cities. Under state law, most municipalities max out their transfer taxes at 55 cents for every $1,000 in sale value. But for “charter cities” — local governments with their own municipal constitution — there is no upper limit. Twenty-six have taken advantage of that fiscal opportunity.

They include Santa Monica, which passed its own version of a high-value transfer tax (Measure GS) in 2022, and Los Angeles. Voters in cities across the San Francisco Bay Area have voted to make more modest or incremental hikes over the last 10 years.

Electoral hurdles to come

The transfer tax trend has particularly irked landlords and real estate developers.

Last year, they joined forces with anti-tax advocates and other business groups to rein in both types of bothersome taxation with a ballot measure. The California Supreme Court took the unusual step of striking it from the 2024 ballot, ruling that it proposed too “substantial” a change to state government to be enacted by a mere ballot measure.

This year’s version is much more carefully targeted making it less likely to hit this same constitutional snag.

But even if the signature gathering effort is successful, the Howard Jarvis campaign has its work cut out for it — even for a conservative-coded measure in reliably blue California. In late 2023, the Legislature floated its own head-spinning ballot measure that would require future initiatives that want to hike the threshold needed to pass other measures (see: the business-backed measure) to meet that same higher threshold (in this case, two-thirds) before becoming law.

That effort to hoist the Howard Jarvis Taxpayer Association on its own petard is already slated for the November 2026 election. If it passes, it would apply to any other measures also on the ballot.

This article was originally published on CalMatters and was republished under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.

Starting Jan. 1, Californians will pay a new fee every time they buy a product with a non-removable battery — whether it's a power tool, a PlayStation, or even a singing greeting card.

The 1.5% surcharge, capped at $15, expands a recycling program that's been quietly collecting old computer monitors and TVs for two decades. The change is a result of Senate Bill 1215, authored by former state Sen. Josh Newman, a Democrat who represented parts of Los Angeles and San Bernardino. It was signed into law in 2022.

Consumers will pay the fee when buying any product with an embedded battery whether it’s rechargeable or not. Many of these products, experts said, end up in the trash. In its most recent analysis, the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery estimates about 7,300 tons of batteries go to landfills illegally or by accident.

California pioneered electronic waste fees with computer monitors and TVs in 2003. The fee worked, keeping hazardous screens out of landfills and building better systems for proper disposal. But over the last 20 years, electronic waste has continued to evolve.

Powerful lithium batteries have become cheaper and more accessible as demand for technology has increased. They now power everyday products, from cellphones and AirPods to power tools and toys.

“These things are everywhere. They’re ubiquitous,” said Joe La Mariana, executive director of RethinkWaste, which manages waste services for 12 San Mateo County cities – a co-sponsor of the legislation.

They’re also, under some circumstances, a risk. Under harsh conditions at recycling and waste facilities, lithium-ion batteries can burst into flames and even explode.

“Paying a small check‑stand fee to fund proper collection is far cheaper than million‑dollar fires, higher insurance premiums, and rate hikes passed back to communities,” said Doug Kobold, executive director of the California Product Stewardship Council, which co-sponsored the legislation.

A growing problem 

In 2016, in the San Mateo County city of San Carlos, a lithium-ion battery sparked a major fire at the Shoreway Environmental Center recycling facility. It caused a four-month plant shutdown and $8.5 million in damage. RethinkWaste, a regional waste management agency, oversees that facility. As a result of the fire, its insurance premium rose from $180,000 to $3.2 million annually, La Mariana said; ratepayers ultimately bore that cost.

That fire catalyzed the waste management agency to seek solutions to the growing battery fire problem.

“Being a publicly owned facility, every bit of that property is owned and paid for by our 430,000 ratepayers,” La Mariana said. “So we have a fiduciary responsibility to maintain the integrity of these assets. But also, on a human level, we have a very high responsibility for the safety of our colleagues and our co-workers.”

Battery fires in waste and recycling facilities are an everyday hazard. Experts say they’re underreported, likely because facilities fear oversight or increases in insurance premiums.

And batteries can catch fire anywhere. Earlier this year, two girls were hospitalized after an electric scooter caught fire in a Los Angeles apartment building. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, there are nearly two battery fires on U.S. flights every week.

Clean energy shift brings battery hazards

The fee consumers will pay in the new year is just one piece of the state’s evolving response to the emerging risk of lithium-ion batteries.

Single-use plastic vapes are exempt from the new law because the Department of Toxic Substances Control raised concerns about collection and recycling systems handling nicotine, a hazardous substance, said Nick Lapis, an advocate with Californians Against Waste, which co-sponsored the legislation. They’re also the fastest growing source of lithium-ion battery waste.

“If you imagine somebody’s a pack a day smoker, that means every single day they’re throwing out a device with a lithium-ion battery,” Lapis said.

Last year, assemblymembers Jacqui Irwin and Lori Wilson introduced Assembly Bill 762, a law that would ban single-use plastic vapes entirely. Lapis says he expects the Legislature to address the risk of vapes this year.

Large-scale lithium-ion batteries present great danger of a different kind.

During the Los Angeles fires, dangerous lithium-ion batteries, including from electric vehicles, were left behind — resulting in a major cleanup operation by the Environmental Protection Agency.

And almost a year ago, a fire burned at a battery storage site in Moss Landing for two days, requiring more than 1,000 people to be evacuated. Monterey County neighbors to the facility have complained of feeling sick since the fire, and a recent study detected toxic metals in nearby marshes.

In 2024, Newsom established a collaborative of state agencies, including the California Air Resources Board and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, to look into safety solutions for battery storage technologies. New CalFire regulations for battery storage systems will take effect this year.

Finding ways to properly dispose of batteries and their lithium in the waste stream is critical as the state transitions away from fossil fuels, said Meg Slattery, a scientist for Earthjustice.

“The next question becomes … where are we sourcing materials, and thinking through what happens to this when we're not using it anymore, which I think we're not traditionally great at thinking about as a society,” she said.

This article was originally published on CalMatters and was republished under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.

I knew it was a gamble taking my mutt, Ace, to herd sheep. He had a little Australian cattle dog in him, but that was it in terms of traditional herding breeds.

Still, one of my neighbors had told me about this place that lets urban dogs test out their sheepherding instincts. I thought Ace’s habit of running at me full steam at the park, then swerving at the last minute, might stem from a deep-seeded urge to mind the flock. So I decided to give it a shot.

Jerry Stewart of Easy’s Place herding greeted us as we pulled up next to the sheep corral on a ranch at the base of the Box Springs Mountains in Riverside. With his cowboy hat and shepherd staff, you’d never know this 76-year-old is a former surfer from Huntington Beach. Unless, of course, you recognize him from an episode of the Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan or one of his other media appearances over the years.

Stewart has been training dogs for 36 years, mostly on a patch of land next to the 710 Freeway in Long Beach. But in October, he was abruptly told he could no longer lease the land.

The author tries to get her dog, Ace, to take an interest in the sheep.

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Joshua Letona

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LAist

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Now, he’s trying to keep his business going in a new location that while much more peaceful, is not as convenient for him and most of his clients.

“I’m retired so I don't need the money,” Stewart said. But he also doesn’t want to lose money training other people’s dogs.

Herding instinct

Stewart holds classes twice, sometimes three times a week. Many of the dogs and their owners are there to let loose behavior that can be destructive at home or annoying at the dog park. But Stewart also trains dogs and their owners for herding competitions, known as trials. (Yep, that’s a thing, and extensively documented on YouTube. You’re welcome.)

The American Kennel Club lists 33 herding breeds that “share an instinctual ability to control the movement of other animals.” These include Australian and German shepherds, as the name suggests, as well as border collies and corgis.

The main motivation for Stewart’s business, he told me, is to help city dogs with herding instincts live their best lives.

“In the backyard, they have nothing to do but chase a bird’s shadow when it flies overhead,” he said. “They get a little neurotic.”

Stewart has a well-worn answer for people wondering whether their pet would like herding: “The dog will tell us.”

Jerry Stewart and his sheep in Moreno Valley.

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Joshua Letona

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My not-so-herder dog

Ace was clearly nervous when I took him out of the car and headed toward the corral. He sniffed the air apprehensively. There were the nearby sheep, of course, but also horses and wild donkeys — all unfamiliar smells for my suburban, condo-bound dog.

We let him loose in the corral and he immediately scoped out the perimeter, which Stewart said was normal. We then led him toward the sheep. He seemed mildly interested, and even caused the small herd to move to another corner of the corral.

But Ace soon turned and headed straight for the exit. Round 1 was over. We tried again later with not much more luck. Ace seemed very relieved when I let him jump back in the car.

“If it's not there, you ain't doing nothing,” Stewart said of a dog’s herding instinct, or lack thereof. “It ain't happening.”

Stewart's seasoned herding dog, Sunny.

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Jill Replogle

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LAist

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The herders

A couple of other dogs at the class couldn’t have seemed happier to be herding. Tir, a 16-year-old blind border collie, is so fragile that her owner  Kimberly Schreyer had to lift her out of the car.

Kimberly Schreyer brings her 16-year-old border collie, Tir, to herd sheep weekly.

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Jill Replogle

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But once in the corral, Tir raced around like a pup, keeping the flock in constant motion. “ She's just so happy,” Schreyer said of the dog’s weekly herding sessions.

Kathleen Wang’s 7-year-old Australian cattle dog, Wally, had been off the herding scene for a few months. But he seemed to jump right back in, easily guiding the flock through a set of barriers, which gets you points at competitions.

“ He's learning the commands and stuff, so I'm pretty proud of him,” Wang said.

She doesn’t plan to compete with Wally, but Wang said herding gives him an outlet for behavior that is less welcome elsewhere.

“At the dog park, he would herd the little white Maltese poodles, like push them into the corner,” Wang said. “And he would be reactive towards other dogs because he wants to control the movement. But coming here, this lets him get his instincts out.”

It’s been a tough year in these parts. Many communities affected by the Palisades and Eaton fires are still reeling, whether directly as homeowners continue to rebuild, relocate and remediate, or indirectly, as communities fight insurance logistics, navigate political processes and recover from mental health implications and job losses. Despite these challenges, the resilience of our city is astounding — and that is worth celebrating, even when it’s bittersweet.

Across the region, events marking the one-year anniversary begin in early January and continue throughout the month. Many organizers have told LAist they would love to have volunteers to help out, so reach out directly to organizers if you are interested in doing more than just attending. All events are free unless otherwise noted.

Events

With Us: Walk with fire survivors through sight, sound and story

Sunday, Jan. 4, 12 to 4 p.m., through Jan. 7, noon to 7:30 p.m.
City Market Social House
1145 S. San Pedro St., downtown L.A.
MORE INFO

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Department of Angels

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Continuing to tell survivors’ stories is key to recovery. That’s the thinking behind the project With Us, an audio and visual storytelling installation focused on “remembrance and recovery.” The event, put on by Department of Angels and Extreme Weather Survivors, aims to bring the community together at City Market Social House on Jan. 4; the art will be available to check out through Jan. 7.

Altadena Candlelight Vigil

Wednesday, Jan. 7, 6 p.m. 
5400 N. Lake Ave., Altadena
MORE INFO

Join local leaders for a candlelight vigil marking one year since the Eaton Fire. The community will “gather in solidarity as we look toward healing, rebuilding, and a brighter tomorrow.”

A Concert for Altadena 

Wednesday, Jan. 7, 6:30 p.m. 
Pasadena Civic Auditorium 
COST: $150; MORE INFO

Indie band Dawes has been one of the most visible survivors and supporters of the Eaton Fire community since the 2025 wildfires. They are putting their notoriety to good use and planning A Concert for Altadena, happening Jan. 7 and featuring some major musical talent, including Jackson Browne, Mandy Moore, Ozomatli, Jenny Lewis, Lord Huron, Rufus Wainwright and many more. Hosted by John C. Reilly, the show benefits the Altadena Builds Back Foundation, which is spearheading long-term recovery and rebuilding efforts.

Songs of Remembrance: A Memorial Service of Hope and Renewal

Wednesday, Jan. 7, 7:30 p.m.
Lake Avenue Church
393 North Lake Ave., Pasadena
MORE INFO

Best-selling Christian author and speaker Philip Yancey will speak at a special community memorial service led by Lake Avenue Church’s Chamber Orchestra and members of the Sanctuary Choir, featuring sacred hymns, choral anthems and classical works that invite reflection, comfort and renewed hope. “This will be a meaningful opportunity to come together and find something redemptive in the midst of tragedy,” said Yancey. “Ironically, it’s often tragedy that brings people together.”

Eaton Fire anniversary community art gathering

Wednesday, Jan. 7, 3 to 5 p.m.
John Muir High School 
1905 Lincoln Ave., Pasadena
MORE INFO

Artist Cynthia Lake, Side Street Projects and the John Muir High School Alumni Association will come together to make art and share stories on a day of remembrance honoring the first anniversary of the Eaton Fire. The afternoon includes art activities, music, resources, performances and more, plus Lake will launch her "Eaton Fire Bowl Series," giving away free handmade ceramic bowls to people affected by the fire — each piece a symbol of hope and comfort.

Community Prayer Services and Concerts of Remembrance, Healing and Renewal 

Wednesday, Jan. 7, 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. 
St. Matthew's Episcopal Church
1031 Bienveneda Ave., Pacific Palisades
OPEN TO ALL, SUGGESTED DONATION $45; MORE INFO

Grammy-winning violinist Anne Akiko Meyers joins members of the Los Angeles Master Chorale, conducted by Grant Gershon, with music by Bach, Morten Lauridsen and Eric Whitacre. Each concert will be preceded by a prayer service at 12 p.m. and 6 p.m. Donations will benefit Chamber Music Palisades, Palisades Symphony and Chorale, St. Matthew’s Music Guild and Theatre Palisades.

Power Up Altadena!

Sunday, Jan. 11, 11 a.m.

Zorthian Ranch 

3990 N. Fair Oaks Ave., Altadena 

MORE INFO

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Dena United

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Dena United is hosting this all-day festival at Altadena’s historic Zorthian Ranch to celebrate the community’s diverse culture and commemorate one year since the devastating Eaton Fire. Expect to see a wide range of performances from acts including Bobby Bradford, Dwight Trible, Baba Onochie Chukwurah & the Rhythms of the Village Family Band, the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra, Earthseed Band and the Whispering Giants with MCs Medusa and Myka 9.

Writers Bloc presents: Firestorm author Jacob Soboroff

Tuesday, Jan. 13, 7:30 p.m. 

Writers Guild Theater

135 S. Doheny Drive, Beverly Hills

COST: $25; MORE INFO

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Writers Bloc

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Palisades native and MSNBC reporter Jacob Soboroff has a new book out in January on the L.A. fires, Firestorm. He’ll be in conversation with Mariana van Zeller at Writers Bloc to discuss.

L.A. Fires One-Year Reflection: Workers in Action

Thursday, Jan. 15, 4 to 6 p.m.

UCLA James Lawson Jr. Worker Justice Center

675 S. Park View St., MacArthur Park

MORE INFO

Construction workers begin to rebuild a business destroyed by the Palisades Fire on May 07, 2025.

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Justin Sullivan

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Getty Images

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The UCLA Labor Center will host a panel discussion at the Lawson Worker Justice Center (adjacent to MacArthur Park), focused on impacts on and protections for workers. Please RSVP; space is limited.

Out of the Ashes: Benefit Concert and Hero Award

Saturday, Jan. 17 
Private residence, Malibu 
COST: $750; MORE INFO

Hosted by Mission Project CEO Erik Rock, the event features a performance from Grammy winner Andy Grammer. Expect other big-name speakers and guests to participate too.