The logic, somehow, seems skewed. In San Bruno, voters will be asked to increase the sales tax there by a full half-cent, making the total in that North County town 8.75 cents. If approved by a simple majority of the electorate Nov. 6 (the Proposition 13 two-thirds mandate somehow does not apply in this case), Measure F, which would generate several million fresh dollars for city programs and services, would make San Bruno the most expensive community along the Peninsula in which to sell goods. That includes gasoline and restaurant food. What makes this plan all the more questionable is that, lo and behold, The Shops at Tanforan, San Bruno’s biggest and most important shopping mall, would be slapped with this levy at the same time it is re-opening after several years _ and millions of bucks _ in renovation work. Thanks a lot. Measure F, if you care to look at it carefully, is really saying to one and all: “Please stay away from San Bruno where everything is going to be taxed to the hilt.” As you might expect, rather than fight the tax and risk any sort of backlash, officials at Tanforan have gritted their teeth and politely declined to take a position on Measure F. However, in a weird turnabout, the city’s Chamber of Commerce, supposedly the fiscal watchdog for the burg’s businesses, is in favor of it. Go figure.

Maybe those who run the Sequoia Union High School District should simply put new taxes on autopilot. That’s the implication from their recent look at a fourth construction bond measure in less than a decade. Three are already on the books and being paid for by the taxpayers. Now, the district’s trustees are examining a fourth. Why? Because the first three can’t finish the job the way the board members want. Where does it all end? At no time does the district, when presenting a bond to the public for approval, come clean. It does not state that, if this new measure passes, we may well return to you and ask for more. And more again. It doesn’t work that way. Instead, a bond is given the OK, construction begins and, oops, more money is needed. At some point, someone in authority needs to stand up and say, “Whoa. This is wrong. Let’s spend within our means. Our taxpayers aren’t a bottomless well of cash. We aren’t governing in good faith.” Don’t hold your breath.