The Los Angeles City Council voted 13-1 Tuesday to place a measure on the November ballot to have voters decide whether to exempt Pacific Palisades from the city’s so-called “mansion tax.”
Voters will be asked to exempt the sale of homes damaged or destroyed by the January 2025 Palisades Fire from Measure United to House Los Angeles, known as Measure ULA. The proposal calls for a one-time, five-year exemption, starting from the date of the fire emergency.
Councilwoman Eunisses Hernandez opposed the measure, and Councilman Curren Price was absent during Tuesday’s meeting.
There was no discussion on the matter.
In July, the council finalized and approved the ballot language.
City Councilwoman Traci Park, who represents Pacific Palisades, sought the exemption.
“Time, options and money are running out for some victims because of the lack of insurance or access to resources, or just because of time lines, bureaucracy, the regulatory hell that so many are still trapped in, or because of family status, or age, or any other multitude of reasons — they have no choice but to sell,” Park said July 1.
She explained the exemption would apply in very narrow circumstances to original owners and first transactions for nearly five years only for residential properties.
“This is the least we can do as this community continues to recover,” Park said.
During that vote, Hernandez also opposed the matter.
Hernandez had raised concerns about how the exemption could be used by private companies, investors or people with a portfolio of properties.
“Any exemption should only be for homeowners whose primary residence was destroyed,” Hernandez said July 1. “I support relief for fire survivors. I believe it is our responsibility. But I do not support creating another loophole for the ultra wealthy while reducing funding for affordable housing, homelessness prevention and tenant protections.”
Approved by voters in 2022, Measure ULA established a transfer tax of 4% on property valued above the annually adjusted figure of $5.3 million, and a 5.5% tax on properties valued above $10.6 million. The tax encompasses the transfer/sales of mansions, apartments, commercial buildings and multi-family housing, among other categories of buildings.
The measure took effect April 1, 2023, and as of April 30, 2026, it had raised nearly $1.2 billion from 1,633 real estate transactions, according to the city Housing Department.
Revenue raised by the tax supports various homelessness prevention programs, such as rental assistance, eviction defense, outreach and tenant rights education, as well as funds affordable housing construction in Los Angeles.