Salesforce CEO says homelessness has affected his business at Mission District rally for Prop. C

[Eugene]

Source: San Francisco Examiner

Salesforce CEO says homelessness has affected his business at Mission District rally for Prop. C

By Laura Waxmann on November 3, 2018 4:18 pm

Days before the Nov. 6 election, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff joined city and state leaders to convince voters that taxing wealthy companies such as his own is The City’s best shot at reducing the number of homeless people on its streets.

Proposition C, a local ballot measure coming before voters next week, is expected to raise nearly $300 million annually for homelessness initiatives by raising the gross receipts tax by an average .5 percent for San Francisco businesses earning more than $50 million.

The measure has not only proven to be divisive in the business community, but also in City Hall — Mayor London Breed, as well as Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, are among its opponents. At a last rally and voter drive held at Dolores Park on Saturday to convince skeptics of the measures’ merits, Benioff explained that he stands behind Prop. C because homelessness has affected his business.

“One of the things about being the largest employer in San Francisco is my customers are coming to San Francisco, my employees are coming to San Francisco, and I have never seen [as] huge [of an] impact on my business as it is with homelessness,” said Benioff, who has personally contributed some $2 million to the Prop. C campaign.

When asked about corporate responsibility in solving one of The City’s biggest and most persistent crises, Benioff said that Salesforce, like so many other successful companies operating in The City, “ has been built on the back of San Francisco.”

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Read more: http://www.sfexaminer.com/salesforce-ceo-says-homelessness-affected-business-mission-district-rally-prop-c/

[RockRaven]

1. It isn't that often you see rich guys not only say "tax me more" (like Buffett does), but actively

campaign for a specific tax increase.

That said, this measure doesn't address any of the damage that businesses like Salesforce are doing to the people of San Francisco, it just helps alleviate a situation these businesses find noxious.