Westminster Keeps Taxing: City Polls Residents on Cannabis and Hotel Tax After Years of Increases

Despite multiple sales tax hikes, city commissions $35,000 survey to explore even more new revenue streams

The Westminster City Council approved spending $35,000 to survey residents on two new potential tax measures — a cannabis sales tax and a hotel tax hike — continuing a years-long pattern of tax increases that Mayor Chi Charlie Nguyen has supported, even as previous hikes were sold as solutions to the city's budget woes.

The Westminster City Council voted at its February 25 meeting to commission a $35,000 public opinion survey to gauge resident support for two new revenue measures: a tax on cannabis sales and an increase to the city's transient occupancy (hotel) tax. The survey will poll at least 400 residents in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese, with results expected back before the council in April.

The city is not voting on the taxes yet — it is spending money to find out if voters will support them.

A City With a Habit

The move is the latest in a series of tax increases in Westminster spanning nearly a decade. The city has already passed three local sales tax measures:

Measure SS (2016): A 1% sales tax approved by voters, generating over $81 million through 2022.
Measure Y (2022): A 1% renewal, placed on the ballot by a 4-1 council vote that included then-Councilmember Chi Charlie Nguyen, now mayor. Voters approved it; it runs through 2043.
Measure E (2024): An additional 0.5% increase, placed on the ballot unanimously by the council. It passed with 62% of the vote and has no sunset date. Westminster's combined sales tax rate now sits at 9.25% — among the highest in Orange County.

Each measure was presented to residents as necessary to preserve city services, fund public safety, and address persistent budget deficits. The message each time: Westminster needs this money to stay solvent.

Still Not Enough

Despite the infusion of revenue from three consecutive tax measures, the city is already exploring more. The February 25 meeting authorized the polling contract under City Manager Christine Cordon's spending authority, presented by Finance Director Erin Backs. The item was received and filed without objection.

The cannabis and hotel taxes, if placed on a future ballot and approved by voters, would add new revenue streams on top of an already elevated sales tax rate.

The Mayor's Record

Mayor Chi Charlie Nguyen has been a consistent supporter of placing these measures before voters. As a councilmember, he voted to put the 2022 Measure Y sales tax renewal on the ballot. The 2024 Measure E increase was approved by a unanimous council vote.

Nguyen is now presiding over a city that is still searching for revenue solutions even after residents approved the taxes he championed.