In a new analysis of government financial reports, I estimated that California state and local governments collected $828 billion of revenue in 2024 accounting for over 20% of California’s Gross Domestic Product.

Local governments in Contra Costa County received over $13 billion. The County collected $6 billion alone. Other large governments that collected $300 million or more were the City of Richmond, the Contra Costa Community College District, the Contra Costa Fire Protection District, and four K-12 school districts: West Contra Costa Unified, Mt, Diablo Unified, San Ramon Valley Unified, and Antioch Unified. Excluded from the $13 billion total are multi-county agencies such as BART, AC Transit and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, which also receive taxes and fees from County residents.

$13 billion is an enormous amount of money and it should be spent carefully. But most of those who follow the money in Contra Costa County are part of the political establishment or are involved with unions, construction contractors, and other special interests who want to see more money flowing through the political system.

To prevent the public sector from overburdening our local economy and limit wasteful spending, Contra Costa taxpayers require their own advocacy. This is why CoCoTax exists and why we hope you’ll support us this season.

2026 will be an especially challenging year as we expect a blizzard of tax and bond measures from the state, regional, and local governments.

If you have already responded to our fundraising appeal via postal mail, thanks for your continued support!

If you did not receive a letter from us or if you’ve yet to respond to our appeal, I hope you’ll go to our membership page at https://cocotax.org/membership to sign up, and if you’re feeling extra generous, you can also visit our donation page.

Finally, if you can find time, please consider volunteering with us. We’ll need help analyzing ballot measures and creating newsletter articles during this busy year.

Next Event

Join us for lunch on January 23, 2026, to learn about the financial problems at Marin Clean Energy, the alternative energy provider for most of Contra Costa County. Register here.