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Politics

PSTA wants half-cent tax hike for growth

Voters would have to approve a sales tax increase.

By CRISTINA SILVA, Times Staff Writer
Published November 25, 2007

The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority is considering asking the County Commission and Pinellas voters to raise the sales tax by a half cent.

The proposal is part of the authority's ongoing effort to tap into new revenue sources and depend less on property taxes to fund operations.

The PSTA wants to put more bus routes on the road and expand service hours.

"We've got to be on a trajectory where we can have long-term growth and we need the funding to do that," said Tim Garling, newly appointed PSTA executive director, during a brainstorming session on the authority's finances Tuesday.

Increasing the sales tax - it now is 7 cents on the dollar in Pinellas - is one of many options being weighed.

The County Commission would have to approve before the measure goes on the ballot. Voters then would approve or reject the proposed increase.

Increasing the sales tax by 0.5 percent, or a half cent, could earn an extra $70-million. That's nearly twice as much as the $37-million the PSTA pulled in from property taxes this year.

The measure could come before voters as soon as November 2008.

It's unclear if voters or the County Commission would go for the plan.

Florida voters have consistently expressed frustration with taxes in recent years, prompting the state Legislature to put a cap on property tax-generated funding in June.

"I am not sure that this is the right time to put it on the ballot and see it passed," said County Commission Chairman Ronnie Duncan, a PSTA board member. "A tax is a tax. The people are smart enough and sophisticated enough that they recognized that."

PSTA board members said the sales tax would be the fairest way to share the cost of expanding the county's transportation system. The sales tax would affect tourists and visitors as well as residents, unlike property taxes, which affect home and business owners. "We need to recognize that we are not going to grow our system by property taxes," said Karl Nurse, a PSTA board member. "It's over."

The PSTA is also reviewing other potential money-making ventures, including asking the county to impose a gas tax or a tourist tax, leasing out vendor space on PSTA-owned land or increasing the price of bus passes and fares.

If the PSTA moves forward with the bus pass hike, the price of a seven-day unlimited ride pass could increase from $15 to $20. A 31-day unlimited ride pass could increase from $45 to $55.

Fares could rise from $1.50 to $1.75 to cover the growing cost of diesel fuel. PSTA staff members described the potential change as a "diesel cost surcharge," not a fare increase.

Allowing advertisements on staff and transit vehicles is another option. Now advertisements are placed on the rear of PSTA buses. If the authority allowed advertisements across the vehicles, the effort could secure PSTA $750,000 in annual profits, according to PSTA projections.

Garling warned board members that protecting the look of the authority's vehicles was less important than securing a new stream of revenue. "The buses don't do you much good if they are sitting in the yard because you have cutbacks," he said. "Most transit systems are pulling in advertising in some way."

Cristina Silva can be reached at 727 893-8846 or csilva@sptimes.com.

[Last modified November 24, 2007, 21:16:55]