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If Gov. Bush signs the bill, Hillsborough and Pinellas officials could ask voters what they think.
By ANITA KUMAR, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times, published April 11, 2002
TALLAHASSEE -- Pinellas and Hillsborough officials have talked for years about building commuter train systems. They also want to buy more buses, build new roads and improve bridges.
But there's never enough money.
Now, the state Legislature has come up with an answer: a new sales tax of up to 1 percent to pay for mass transit, roads and bridges.
County commissioners would have to put the tax to a referendum. But first, Gov. Jeb Bush must sign the legislation into law.
The tax is similar to the Penny for Pinellas and Hillsborough's community investment tax, both of which pay for capital improvement projects, such as parks, drainage and Raymond James Stadium.
"It's something you want in your tool kit," said Brian Smith, Pinellas planning director.
The measure applies only to Pinellas and Hillsborough. Voters could see it on a ballot as soon as November. But it is unclear whether county commissioners would take advantage of the tax even if the bill becomes law.
"We're not out there counting money," said Pinellas commission Chairwoman Barbara Sheen Todd. "But we're supportive any time you have flexibility in local spending."
The new tax was in an obscure amendment tacked onto a massive transportation bill that environmental groups oppose for many reasons.
The governor, who has until today to decide what to do with the bill, has vetoed similar transportation plans in the past because the Legislature tied together dozens of issues to get them passed at the last minute.
The governor's office has received 2,635 e-mails and letters against the bill, many from people opposed because they say it will lead to unjustified toll roads and construction in rural and environmentally sensitive areas. Supporters have sent 515 e-mails and letters.
Tampa Bay area legislators have tried for years to get the sales tax bill passed so Hillsborough could pay for a huge transportation plan that has repeatedly divided the County Commission.
Hillsborough wants $1-billion over the next decade for transportation. Pinellas is spending $2.5-million over the next two years to study the county's transit needs, including a light-rail system.
The bill does not spell out how long they could keep collecting the tax.
In Pinellas, a 1 percent sales tax would have raised $117.6-million in the 2001-2002 fiscal year. In Hillsborough, it would have raised $161.5-million.
"It provides a level of funding that doesn't exist anywhere else," said Ed Crawford, a spokesman for HARTline, Hillsborough's bus system. He is a County Commission candidate.
But legislators have been reluctant to pass the bill because they considered it a tax increase.
"It's not a tax increase," said Sen. Les Miller, D-Tampa, who sponsored the bill this year. "People can decide whether they want to tax or not."
The bill wasn't going anywhere again this year, so Miller and Rep. Sara Romeo, D-Tampa, got the amendment put into the transportation bill (HB 261) that passed overwhelmingly in the House and Senate.
"It allows (local governments) to make decisions on their individual needs," Romeo said. "My whole goal was to give authority to local people."
If the bill becomes law, Hillsborough and Pinellas would join six Florida counties eligible to levy the tax. Duval is the only one that is collecting the tax.
County planners and transportation planning boards support the proposal. But it would be up to county commissioners to determine whether to ask voters to tax themselves.
Hillsborough Commission Chairwoman Pat Frank said she is reluctant to create the tax, though she knows that some of her colleagues support it.
"We want to know that money is being spent wisely," she said.