Arcata’s City Council took the formal step of sending Measure G renewal to the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot and immediately began organizing the ballot-argument process around it.
At its June 17 meeting, the council adopted Resolution No. 256-63 placing renewal of the city’s three-fourths-cent transactions and use tax measure before voters and submitting Ordinance No. 1589 to qualified voters at the general municipal election. The council also asked the city attorney to prepare an impartial analysis of the measure, according to the meeting minutes.
In a separate election action, the council adopted Resolution No. 256-66 calling the Nov. 3 election, requesting the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors consolidate it with the statewide general election and asking the Humboldt County Office of Elections to conduct it. The council then appointed Councilmember Stillman and Vice Mayor Atkins-Salazar to draft the primary argument in favor of the sales tax measure. The minutes say the subcommittee was also authorized to draft a rebuttal argument if one is needed, and to return to the council for approval on Aug. 5.
The Measure G item came alongside other fiscal actions at the same meeting, including adoption of the city’s 2026-27 budget and appropriations limit. But the ballot measure vote and the appointment of council members to write the pro argument were the key election developments tied to the tax renewal.
The ballot arguments themselves were not part of the record reviewed for this story. The council minutes also do not show any public discussion of neutrality or conflict-of-interest concerns when it named the argument writers.
