TAMPA, Fla. – A one-cent sales tax may not sound like much, but all those pennies can add up quickly.
Case in point: a referendum in front of Hillsborough County voters this November that would increase the sales tax by one cent to pay for transportation improvements. It’s estimated to generate about $280 million a year.
Proponents of the referendum say it’s a badly needed and long overdue investment in Tampa Bay’s transportation infrastructure, but opponents say it won’t fix the problem.
“Traffic is going to get worse. By providing more public transportation options, it doesn’t matter whether you’re going to ride the bus or a train or a ferry or not, some people will and that’s going to take congestion off the roads and reduce congestion,” said Tyler Hudson, Chairman of All For Transportation, the group behind the referendum. “Transportation is a critical shortcoming we have that people who live here, people who visit here, people who come here for work, they see it and it’s clear as day. The reason it’s a problem is because of a generation of underinvestment, we can start to change that right now in November.”
The proposed increase, if approved by voters, would put Hillsborough County in a tie for the highest sales tax of any county in the state.
“One of the reasons we have a $9 billion backlog is because we don’t have enough local investment,” added Hudson. “There’s a state sales tax, 6% of your sales tax goes off to Tallahassee, who knows what they do with it. This is a Hillsborough County-only investment. It’s going to stay in Hillsborough County, it’s going to be managed by Hillsborough County citizens and it’s going to fix your roads.”
But others say not only will that increase hurt people on a fixed income, but they also say the plan will only make things worse.
“We’re going to find ourselves in five or ten years after implementation that we’re much worse if we pass this tax,” said Karen Jaroch who is with the non-profit group Fix Our Roads First and also works as a lobbyist for the conservative Heritage Action for America.
“This is a tax based on a twenty-year transportation plan and it’s a tax for thirty years so that, off the bat, has got me upset,” said Jaroch. “This totally overfunds transit and underfunds roads and most people, 98% of the people in our county ride our roads.”
“We don’t need this tax. It costs way too much and it moves too few people,” she added. “I’m for improvements in transportation and reducing congestion, but this plan does not do that.”
The referendum will be on the November ballot along with a separate half-cent sales tax to help fund Hillsborough County schools. If both referendums pass, the county’s sales tax rate will go up to 8.5%, the highest sales tax of any county in the state.
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