Council Splits on 40% Stipend Raise as Food Truck Rules Close Tax Gap

Rio Vista's City Council tackled a packed agenda that exposed fault lines over money, optics and fairness — approving a contentious pay raise for future council members, closing a years-long sales-tax loophole on food trucks, and charting a softer path on downtown parking enforcement.

• Council votes 3-2 to raise its own monthly stipend from $535 to $750, effective January 2027, with 3% annual increases — dropping a proposed health insurance benefit after sharp opposition
• New food truck and mobile vendor ordinance passes unanimously, requiring sales-tax collection in Rio Vista and cracking down on a stationary trailer operating in a regulatory gray area
• Downtown parking enforcement gets a warning-first approach — letters, social media notices and 30 days of windshield warnings before citations begin
• Cannabis businesses win flexibility to swap operators one time without a Planning Commission hearing
• Highway 12 SHOP complete streets project delayed again, now pushed to 2028–2029
• Council requests an e-bike and motorized scooter ordinance review after multiple near-miss sidewalk incidents

Why it matters: Supporters say the increase is the only way to open the dais to working-class and younger residents; opponents say voters who just absorbed a sales-tax hike, water and sewer rate increases, and have yet to see a single Measure K project will view the move as self-serving.