Follow the Money

Who is paying to pass the tax?

A sales tax this large does not put itself on the ballot. The "Yes" campaign, organized as the Connect Bay Area Transit committee, has raised more than $4 million. The money is coming largely from the businesses, contractors, and unions that stand to collect or benefit from the spending the tax would fund. Voters paying the tax should know who is paying for the campaign.

Illustration of a Bay Area train and bus beside the bay and a bridge

More than $4 million, mostly from those who benefit

The committee's itemized contributions now total more than $4 million. The donors fall into a familiar pattern: the contractors who build transit, the firms that design it, the unions that staff it, and large employers and individual backers.

Itemized contributions to the Connect Bay Area Transit committee, as reported on California Form 460 and available through the county's NetFile portal, linked below. The official top-funder designation (Salesforce, Chris Larsen, SEIU Local 1021) reflects the committee's May 2026 disclosure.
ContributorWhat they areTotal Contributions
Chris LarsenWealthy individual$500,000
Salesforce, Inc.Big corporation$500,000
Service Employees International Union Local 1021 Issues PACUnion$300,000
Genentech USA, Inc.Big corporation$250,000
Nicholas JosefowitzWealthy individual$250,000
Meta Platforms, Inc.Big corporation$250,000
TransitAmerica Services, Inc.Contractor$250,000
Autodesk, Inc.Big corporation$175,000
Modern Infrastructure Alliance Action Fund, Sponsored by PrologisCorporate PAC$150,000
PG&E CorporationBig corporation$125,000
Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1555Union$100,000
Hitachi Rail STS USA, Inc.Contractor$100,000
HNTB CorporationContractor$100,000
Silicon Valley Community FoundationFoundation$100,000
Visa, Inc.Big corporation$100,000
Laura YakovenkoWealthy individual$100,000
Golden State Group (Yoyo Murphy)Big corporation$75,000
AFSCME Local 3993 BART Supervisory & Professional UnionUnion$50,000
Amazon.com Services LLCBig corporation$50,000
BXP, Inc.Big corporation$50,000
HDR, Inc.Contractor$50,000
Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc.Contractor$50,000
San Francisco Baseball Associates, LLCBig corporation$50,000
WSP USA Inc.Contractor$50,000
AFSCME Council 57 Issues PACUnion$25,000
Consor North America, Inc.Contractor$25,000
DMZ BuildersContractor$25,000
GFT Infrastructure, Inc.Contractor$25,000
Gillig, LLCContractor$25,000
Hanson Bridgett LLPLaw firm$25,000
Kimley-Horn & Assoc. Inc.Contractor$25,000
Pgh Wong Engineering, Inc.Contractor$25,000
RSE CorporationContractor$25,000
The Allen Group, LLCContractor$25,000
GRAND TOTAL$4,025,000
The pattern: the campaign to make the public pay a 14-year sales tax is bankrolled in large part by the contractors and consultants who would be paid to build and run the projects, and by the union representing the workers it would fund. The people who collect the money are paying to pass the tax. That is exactly why it deserves scrutiny before, not after, the agencies are handed roughly a billion dollars a year.

The coalition behind it

The committee is led by a mix of business and labor organizations, including:

  • Bay Area Council (regional business group)
  • SPUR (urban policy advocacy)
  • SAMCEDA (San Mateo County economic development)
  • SEIU Local 1021 and ATU Local 1555 (transit and public-sector unions)

See the full, itemized list yourself

Every contribution over $100 is itemized on the committee's Form 460 filings. You can review the complete, official record, including names, amounts, and dates, on Santa Clara County's NetFile portal.

View the official filings on NetFile

Filer: Connect Bay Area Transit (Santa Clara County ID 214761697). As the campaign files new statements, the itemized totals here will grow.

Sources: Connect Bay Area Transit Official Top Funders statement (May 2026); campaign fundraising announcement reported by the Antioch Herald (January 15, 2026) and KQED; and Form 460 filings on file with Santa Clara County via NetFile. Donor descriptions reflect each entity's primary business or role. Dollar figures are as reported on the dates noted; consult the NetFile filings for the current itemized totals.