Needles City Council directs staff to prepare three Nov. 3 ballot measures after consultant polling

The Needles City Council directed staff to prepare three measures for the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot — a proposed increase to the transit-occupancy tax (TOT), a general obligation (GO) bond to fund street and infrastructure repairs, and a charter amendment adjusting council compensation — after hearing a consultant’s voter survey and debating which items to place before voters.

Consultant Michael Bush of Urban Futures told council members that a phone-and-text poll of roughly 110 households (about 140 individuals) produced mixed results: respondents ranked street and road conditions as the community’s weakest service and highest funding priority, the proposed $25 million GO bond initially polled around 61% support when combining yes and leaning‑yes answers but “falls mainly short” of the two‑thirds approval threshold required for GO bonds, while a proposed increase in the city’s transit‑occupancy tax polled above a majority and therefore would need only a simple majority to pass. “A $60 annual assessment per $100,000 of assessed value would generate about $10 million in proceeds to fix roads,” Bush said during the presentation.

Council members debated strategy. Some members warned that placing multiple measures on the same ballot risks voter fatigue; others argued voters should decide on all proposals. After discussion, the council voted to direct staff to prepare and return with formal resolutions and ordinance language at the next meeting to place the three measures on the November ballot. Staff said the council’s action tonight was direction only and that formal adoption of each resolution/ordinance will be required at a subsequent meeting before the measures are transmitted to the county registrar.

Council discussion also settled on a working assessment scenario for the road bond: a $60 annual assessment per $100,000 of assessed value (staff and the consultant noted that alternative assessment amounts were tested in the survey with corresponding changes in projected revenues). Council members emphasized education and community outreach in the months before the election; the consultant and city manager said the council is limited to education (not advocacy) under the Brown Act and election law.

The council’s direction requires staff to draft the official ballot resolutions and ordinance language and return them for council adoption in time to meet county deadlines. The council’s formal roll-call approval of the direction to draft the three measures was recorded at the meeting; staff will prepare the exact ballot language and financing details for vetting at the next meeting.

What’s next: staff and the city attorney will prepare the resolutions and ordinances for council consideration at the next regular meeting. If adopted, each measure will appear as a separate item on the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot and be certified by the county according to normal election deadlines.