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DEL.ICIO.USPorter: Democrats will insist on cash for mass transit
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
House Democrats will insist that a measure to allow residents of metro Atlanta and offer regions to vote on a penny sales tax for transportation permit some of the cash to be used for rail.
That’s what House Minority Leader DuBose Porter said Monday at a rally for mass transit proponents at the state Capitol.
“We cannot pave our way out of gridlock. This is someone from rural Georgia talking,” Porter said. “If people are going to vote to tax themselves, we’re going to make sure they have the option of mass transit.”
House Minority Leader DuBose Porter (D-Dublin) at Monday’s rally
As a constitutional amendment, S.R. 845 would require a two-thirds majority, which should Democrats in the House and Senate a say in the final shape of the legislation — especially if Republicans split on the taxation aspects of the bill.
In metro Atlanta, a penny sales tax would raise an estimated $632 million a year. But in less populated areas of the state, the cash that could be gained by a sales tax might not be worth the trouble of counties banding together to apply it.
Porter also acknowledged the measure will have a tough time passing the House — unless it includes some incentives for rural Georgia.
Porter advocates taking a one percent sales tax that sends about $150 million into the state’s general fund, and putting it toward transportation projects for areas outside metro Atlanta. (Another three pennies on every dollar of gasoline already go toward transportation.)
Neill Herring, a Sierra Club lobbyist and longtime Capitol observer, agrees that some inducements must be dangled before rural lawmakers will buy into S.R. 845. “This is an Atlanta bill, and it looks like an Atlanta bill,” Herring said.
Comments
By Spence
March 17, 2008 4:33 PM | Link to this
Metro Atlanta would be stupid to vote for a plan that diverts even one penny of a local sales tax to rural Georgia.
By BadOleBoys
March 17, 2008 8:20 PM | Link to this
When gas gets high enough and scarce enough, things will change. Just remember that you are dealing with mostly Incumbent Georgia Republicans. They’re slow — really slow. I think it took most of them two years in office before they figured out that they won. Then they started fighting amongst themselves like a pack of malnourished coyotes. I just can’t wait to see what they do for an encore. Oh wait, Cagle has already given us a preview behind a back-lit screen. EEEWWWWWWWWWWW!
By Wackolibhack
March 18, 2008 1:36 AM | Link to this
Bush hates combustion engines!! Bush wants to force mass transit. It is all part of the master plan. I hate Bush.