Nov. 5--It will soon be a bit more expensive to buy anything in San Mateo or stay in a hotel near San Francisco International Airport after voters convincingly approved seven tax-hike measures in Tuesday's election.

San Mateo County voters cast more than enough ballots to pass one sales tax measure and six hotel tax initiatives, while they squashed one other sales tax item.

Cities from San Carlos to South San Francisco wagered residents would be willing to raise their taxes to support their cities in times of fiscal crisis. Most cities have cut services or at least reduced spending to cope with the greatest recession in a generation, although residents and businesses are enduring similar or worse financial problems.

San Mateo voters supported Measure L, hiking the city's sales tax rate from 9.25 percent to 9.5 percent, with 60.8 percent of the vote. Like the rest of the tax measures on Tuesday's ballot, it needed a simple majority to pass.

San Mateo will now have the highest sales tax in San Mateo County, as all other cities will maintain a rate of 9.25 percent.

On the other hand, 55.7 percent of San Carlos voters shot down Measure U, which would have raised the city's sales tax rate from 9.25 percent to 9.75 percent.

Voters in six cities near SFO also overwhelmingly endorsed hotel tax hikes.

The measures in Burlingame, Brisbane, Millbrae, San Mateo and San Bruno raised hotel taxes from 10 percent to 12 percent, while South San

Francisco's initiative bumped its hotel tax from 9 percent to 10 percent.

Most of the measures passed with fat margins, led by Burlingame's Measure H, which was endorsed by 79.4 percent of voters. Other results included Brisbane's Measure G (63.9 percent approved), Millbrae's Measure J (68.1 percent), San Mateo's Measure M (74.5 percent), South San Francisco's Measure O (77.9 percent) and San Bruno's Measure F (70.1 percent).

Burlingame's measure should produce about $2 million per year to help the city cope with its budget woes, which led to a recent $4 million deficit.

San Mateo's two measures were designed to generate $4 million combined, enough to close the city's $8 million budget gap, which was sliced in half earlier this year through service cuts.

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