On Monday, the most controversial bill of the legislative season won lopsided support as Congress authorized Maricopa County to hold transportation tax elections next year.
The measure would allow the county to ask voters whether to extend the half-cent sales tax on various transportation projects for the next 20 years. Senate Bill 1102 passed the House and Senate in a bipartisan vote following major changes made during negotiations between Governor Katie Hobbs and Republican legislative leaders.
Of the estimated $14.9 billion that the tax is expected to raise, 40.5% will be for highway projects, 37% for transportation, and 22.5% for highway and intersection improvements.
After months of debate, funding for road projects in the 20-Year Plan increased at the expense of transportation projects where the light rail component was off the charts for many Republicans.
Measures in the Maricopa Government Association’s original proposed plan to address climate-related issues were also cut because the final plan had a less environmentally friendly feel.
The transportation tax question is scheduled to appear on Maricopa County’s November 2024 ballot.
Bill Drives Valley Growth
Proponents hailed the plan as key to maintaining the Valley’s economic prosperity for decades to come.
“These critical infrastructure investments will build and attract businesses and make Arizona the perfect place to live, work and raise families,” Hobbs said in a written statement. .
Senate Speaker Warren Petersen (R-Gilbert) underscored the provisions added to the bill, which he said were aimed at maximizing the capacity of highways and roads by reducing congestion and travel times. Stated.
Among other road projects, the plan will fund the construction of two new Valley Expressways: State Route 30, which parallels congested Interstate 10 in the west of the Valley, and State Route 24 in the southeast of the Valley. will be covered. It also pays for highway improvements throughout the valley.
He called it the “most conservative transportation plan” he’s seen in the Valley, pushing back against his party’s critics who derided the plan as a congressional progressive’s own version of the Green New Deal.
Emphasizing that the plan is a guardrail against what he calls “unachievable environmental goals set by the radical left,” Petersen said, “If you say that, you are very misunderstood. or lacks integrity,” he said.
The Big Controversy: Light Rail
Light rail was a lightning rod issue in the first proposal from MAG, which represents cities and towns in the county. Lawmakers used the power they had in state law to push for changes to the bill, ultimately increasing funding for highways and banning funding for light rail expansion in the Valley, among other ways to reduce transportation pots. reduced.
The plan allows 3.5% of transportation costs to maintain existing rail infrastructure, but prohibits spending on light rail expansion. The Valley’s light rail system currently runs from Mesa through Tempe and north to Dunlap Avenue in Phoenix. An extension to south Phoenix is underway.
The final bill also included a number of provisions aimed at reducing vehicle emissions and other measures aimed at reducing dependence on fossil fuels.
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego said she was surprised lawmakers would turn their backs on provisions aimed at curbing climate change and reducing air pollution.
“We just had July and I’m surprised the resilience focus of the bill is so controversial,” she said, referring to the Valley’s unprecedented days of temperatures above 110 degrees.
For example, it specifically prohibits cities and states from restricting the sale of cars based on fuel type, in reaction to California laws intended to encourage the purchase of electric vehicles.
But Gallego, who also chairs MAG, praised the final product as an investment in the infrastructure needed for future growth.
No capitol rail loop
Lawmakers also demanded and won an agreement for Phoenix to withdraw its planned light rail extension around the Capitol, even though it wasn’t part of the bill.
Speaker of the House Ben Thoma (R-Glendale) said the loop would pass through the parking lots of both houses of Congress, so lawmakers had to drive over the tracks twice instead of once. said he would.
“I thought it was a personal insult,” he said.
Negotiations in July between Mr. Thoma, Mr. Petersen and Mr. Hobbes reinstated the transportation bill, which Mr. Hobbes had vetoed in June.
The vote was bipartisan, with all but one Democrat in favor. However, Republicans were divided over the issue, and members of the Freedom Caucus opposed the use of tax dollars for light rail.
Rep. Justin Heap (R-Mesa) said the bill holds road projects “hostage” to the requirement to also spend on light rail.
He and other members of the right-wing Freedom Caucus lamented the abandonment of previous plans to split the question in two, with the traffic clause requiring a separate vote from road projects.
Senator Jake Hoffman, who questioned many parts of the MAG plan and led to the change, said it would have been more beneficial to voters if the ballot had two questions. One deals with road funding and the other deals with what he calls “the masses who have failed spectacularly.” It’s the transportation system here. ”
He cited passenger figures for 2021 that show the distance traveled within the valley is a few to miles. In 2021, the number of transport riders decreased due to safety concerns caused by COVID-19.
Many of the Republican legislators who supported the bill decided it was best left to voters in Maricopa County instead of the 90 members who did not live in the greater Phoenix area.
Rep. Celina Bliss (R-Prescott) said lawmakers don’t have to tell Maricopa County whether the election will go ahead.
“This is their sandbox,” she said of Maricopa County residents. “I say let them play there.”
“Let’s pick ourselves up, get out of the way, and let Maricopa County voters decide what’s best for them,” she said while voting yes on the bill.
He also noted that if Maricopa County could meet its own transportation needs, it would reduce competition for statewide transportation costs among the other 14 counties.
Maricopa County is the only county of 15 that requires legislative approval before it can hold transit elections, according to a law enacted in 1999 by skeptical legislators.
Here’s where to contact reporters: maryjo.pitzl@arizonarepublic.com Or contact her at 602-228-7566 and follow her on Twitter @maryjpitzl.
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