YUCCA VALLEY — The Yucca Valley Airport District has called a special election for July 2 proposing a tax to augment operations and maintenance at the airport.
Yucca Valley Airport is located in the town of Yucca Valley,  3224 feet above sea level, the closest civilian aviation facility to Joshua Tree National Park. Yucca Valley Airport is open to the general public and to visiting aircraft 24 hours a day.  It does not have any commercial passenger services but does provide services such as aircraft maintenance and flight training.
Currently, the airport runs on an annual $10,000 endowment from a Caltrans fund that distributes aviation gas tax money as well as the proceeds from private use fees. If the taxing proposal, known as Measure Z, passes,  property owners in the district will be assessed 2 cents per square foot annually, an amount to be adjusted annually for inflation. This will entail an assessment annually of about $250 for typical property owners in the district, depending on parcel size. There are 43 registered voters in the district at present. The measure must be approved by two-thirds of those to pass.
The tax would generate roughly  $146,000 annually, allowing the airport district to soldier on. If Measure Z fails,  the airport district will need to disincorporate  for lack of a stable revenue source. The airport will be able to continue as a private corporation under that scenario.
Yucca Valley is operated with one primary runway, oriented in an east-west direction.   Yucca Valley Airport offers parking for transit aircraft at the west end of the airport. As a public facility, it is used by government agencies utilizing aircraft for firefighting and search-and-rescue operations, as well as by medical teams and medical transport helicopters.