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Early Returns Show Strong Support For SMART Tax Extension in Sonoma, Marin

Sonoma and Marin County voters are supporting Measure B to extend a quarter-cent sales tax funding SMART rail for 30 years, ahead of upcoming Bay Area transit ballot measures.
Adhiti Bandlamudi
Passengers get on the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) train at the Marin County Civic Center stop in San Rafael on June 1, 2026. (Gina Castro for KQED)

Voters in Sonoma and Marin counties appeared to approve Measure B, a sales tax measure that would fund the Sonoma-Marin Rail Transit District, or SMART, for another 30 years.

The measure extends an existing one-quarter cent sales tax, which would have expired in 2029.

“The North Bay loves SMART, and they showed their support big time by overwhelmingly passing Measure B,” state Sen. Mike McGuire, who represents Marin, said Tuesday night. “SMART is the backbone of public transit in Marin and Sonoma counties.”

The yes vote comes just months before Bay Area voters will decide on another sales tax measure to fund BART, MUNI, AC Transit and other local transit systems.

North Bay voters approved the existing tax in 2008, which has paid for construction and operation of SMART trains.

Early returns on Tuesday showed 70% of Marin voters and 58.7% of Sonoma voters approved the measure.

Six years ago, a similar measure failed. Nearly half of Sonoma County voters — 49.8% — and 53.5% of Marin County voters supported it, but it fell short of the two-thirds threshold needed to pass. Experts attributed the defeat to SMART’s high operating costs and modest ridership.

Live 2026 Election Results

“Victory for Measure B was a foregone conclusion because they raised and spent well over a million dollars — and we raised and spent zero,” Kingston Cole with the Coalition of Sensible Taxpayers said in an emailed statement. “It’s an extravagant waste of taxpayers’ money.”

But agency ridership data show more residents of Marin and Sonoma counties are using the train. In April, the agency celebrated the highest monthly ridership in its history.

According to the agency data, ridership has rebounded since the pandemic, with more than 1 million customers using the rail last year, compared with 122,849 in 2021.

Earlier this year, SMART increased service by 19%, adding more frequent trains earlier in the morning and later in the evening.

The agency also coordinated with Golden Gate Transit and other regional transit providers to create a more seamless and frequent network of trains and buses.

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