Oxnard’s Measure O sales tax is a half-cent (0.5%) local add-on that city voters approved in November 2008 to fund police, fire, street repair, and youth and senior programs. It passed with 65% support, carries a built-in 20-year sunset, and is scheduled to expire in March 2029 unless voters renew it.1City of Oxnard. Measure O
What You Pay It On
Measure O adds half a cent to every taxable retail purchase made inside Oxnard city limits. The California Department of Tax and Fee Administration collects it alongside the state and county sales tax and sends the Measure O share back to the city.2California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. Sales and Use Tax in California Your receipt shows one combined rate, not a separate Measure O line.
The tax hits tangible goods: clothing, furniture, electronics, building materials, and the like. Groceries bought for home consumption and prescription medicine are exempt under existing California law, so basic food and pharmacy purchases are not affected.3California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. Sales and Use Tax Regulations – Article 8 Restaurant meals are taxable. Professional services such as legal advice, accounting, and haircuts sit outside California’s sales tax base entirely, so Measure O does not reach them.
Where the Money Goes
Measure O is a general tax, meaning the revenue flows into Oxnard’s general fund rather than being legally locked to a single purpose. In practice the city has directed spending to the categories voters were told about in 2008.
Police, Fire, and Emergency Response
A significant portion funds public safety. Measure O supports the 911 computer-aided dispatch system, the Advanced Life Support paramedic program, and equipment including fire engines and portable radios for first responders. Public safety spending totaled $2 million in the most recent reported year.4City of Oxnard. Measure O Annual Community Report
Streets and Infrastructure
Road resurfacing is the most visible use. From fiscal year 2022–23 through 2025–26, the city budgeted $36 million of Measure O money for street resurfacing capital projects, and the tax also covers bond payments tied to a 2014 lease revenue project that financed earlier neighborhood street work.4City of Oxnard. Measure O Annual Community Report Pothole repair, sidewalks, and traffic improvements fall under the same bucket.
Youth and Senior Programs
On the youth side, Measure O funds the Police Activities League summer basketball program (over 200 youth), a year-round library homework center that helped 901 students, and a mobile recreation program that reached more than 3,100 kids across 16 parks in 2023–24. For seniors, the tax supports congregate meals at three senior centers (over 21,400 hot meals served in 2023–24) and home-delivered meals for more than 320 homebound residents.4City of Oxnard. Measure O Annual Community Report
When Measure O Expires
The 2008 ballot language authorized the half-cent for 20 years only. Collection is scheduled to end in March 2029.1City of Oxnard. Measure O At that point the half-cent automatically comes off Oxnard’s sales tax rate. The city cannot keep collecting it without going back to voters for a renewal or replacement.
How It Stacks With Measure E Today
In November 2020, Oxnard voters approved Measure E, a separate 1.5% city sales tax projected to generate about $40 million a year for general services. Measure E has no sunset date and continues until voters repeal it.5Ballotpedia. Oxnard, California, Measure E, Sales Tax (November 2020)
With both measures in effect, Oxnard’s combined sales tax rate is 9.25%, built from the 6% state rate, the 0.25% Ventura County rate, the local city rates including Measure O and Measure E, and a county transportation tax. When Measure O drops off in March 2029, the combined rate should fall to 8.75%, assuming no new measures pass in the meantime.
Oversight and Reporting
Because Measure O is a general tax with no legal spending restrictions, the city built in oversight to track whether actual spending matches the 2008 promises. In March 2010, the City Council established the nine-member Measure O Citizen Oversight Committee to review how the revenue is spent.6City of Oxnard. Measure O Citizen Oversight Committee All Measure O expenditures also require public City Council approval before the money is spent, and the city publishes a Measure O Annual Report each year after the Council approves the audited financial report for the prior fiscal year.1City of Oxnard. Measure O Any resident can pull those reports to see what came in and where it went.