Google’s hometown passes new business tax to cope with rise in tech commuters

Voters in Mountain View, Calif., approved a ballot measure Tuesday to tax businesses as much as $150 per employee, with millions of dollars expected to be collected from hometown tech giant Google.

The initiative, Measure P, could generate as much as $6 million for the city’s general fund, affordable housing services and efforts to ease traffic congestion, according to the Mercury News. The city will charge businesses on a progressive payment scale, with larger companies paying more for each employee as their head counts rise. Three nearby cities have already levied a head tax on local businesses, according to the report, but critics say Measure P unfairly singles out Google, which will absorb 60 percent of the tax.

By Hamza Shaban

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2018/11/07/voters-mountain-view-pass-head-tax-targeting-google/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.786ceb260147