San Marcos is among the nine cities in San Diego County pursuing a sales tax increase this election cycle to help shore up a structural budget deficit. All four candidates for two City Council seats indicated in emailed comments that they support Measure Q, which is estimated to bring an additional $20 million per year to city coffers if voters approve increasing local sales tax levies by one cent per dollar spent. Incumbent Ed Musgrove is the only one on the ballot directly involved in putting the measure up for a vote, joining in the council’s unanimous decision to make sales tax the method to address an ongoing budget deficit which required using “non-recurring funds” and cost-cutting measures, right down to temporarily reducing “street sweeping, tree trimming and other routine maintenance” to balance the bottom line this year, according to budget documents. “We have looked at all options short of cutting city services to stay ahead of the rate of inflation and the cost of maintaining our city operations,” Musgrove said in an email. He faces challenger Natasha Zander Hilmes in his first re-election bid to retain his seat in District 4, which is largely north of state Route 78, including Palomar College. Sharon Jenkins, the incumbent in District 3, located south of 78, including Cal State San Marcos, was termed out of her position, opening the way for newcomers Alan Geraci and Danielle LeBlang. Candidates were asked to share the top-three issues that led them to run: District 3 Alan Geraci is an attorney practicing in trusts and estates, previously serving as head trial and appellate prosecutor for the City of San Diego. He is an executive board member for the San Diego Sierra Club and volunteers for San Marcos Meals on Wheels and the North County Food Bank. Top-three issues: Increasing the supply of affordable housing through “smart growth planning,” updating the city’s General Plan “which is 2 years past due” and balancing the budget while “procuring land and building a fifth fire station,” and protecting “our open spaces and wildlife corridors.” Danielle LeBlang is an attorney turned stay-at-home mom active with the Boys and Girls Club of San Marcos and the San Marcos Chamber of Commerce. After college, she interned with the governor and lieutenant governor of Illinois. Top-three issues: Enhancing public safety by “ensuring law enforcement has the necessary resources to keep our families safe,” improving the city’s structural resources by “deploying critical infrastructure improvements and modernization” and promoting small business with a “focus on attracting and retaining quality small businesses that strengthen our sense of community while boosting our local economy.” District 4 Natasha Zander Hilmes works for the Extended Learning Program at Cal State San Marcos as an instructor in its Supervisory Certificate Program and also as a professional and corporate programs liaison. She also owns and operates N. Zander Hilmes Consulting, a business focused on training development and delivery. Top-three issues: Improving traffic and road safety by reimagining “how we move around the city” and “exploring transportation alternatives,” promoting responsible development by prioritizing “the needs of residents (and) preserving the character of San Marcos” and updating the city’s General Plan “to put into place a plan that will ensure we grow sustainably.” Incumbent Ed Musgrove is a U.S. Army veteran and retired San Diego County Sheriff’s captain, serving as station commander in Santee. He is one of the city’s alternates on the board of directors of the San Diego Association of Governments and represents the city on the board of the Clean Energy Alliance. Top-three issues: Balancing housing mandates “from Sacramento with the realities of marketability and community desire for housing in our region,” avoiding “a cookie cutter approach from 400 miles away,” addressing budget concerns exacerbated by “the lowest apportionment of property taxes in the county” which puts operations “on a very thin margin to keep our city safe and vibrant” and public safety, which his background in law enforcement provides “insight to critically evaluate needs and fairly project how we can meet those needs.”