One of the biggest Sine Die surprises has been the abrupt reversal on a proposal to allow counties with MARTA to raise an additional $200 million each year for the transit agency. And it may speak more about the divide between House and Senate Democrats than it does the Republican powerbrokers that engineered the move.
The provision to let Clayton, Fulton and DeKalb counties raise sales tax from 1 percent to 1.5 percent for MARTA was a key piece of a deal that led Democrats to support the broader plan to raise nearly $1 billion for transportation improvements. But it seemed in trouble from the moment suburban Atlanta Republicans nearly derailed the proposal on Tuesday.
As the clock ticked down on Thursday, House Democrats joined with Republicans to swiftly kill the proposal. The AJC's Kristina Torres and Aaron Gould Sheinin bring you the story:
Both House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams, D-Atlanta, and Rep. Calvin Smyre, D-Columbus, the most senior member of the House, spoke in favor of the amendment.
"The language that will be voted upon in the amendment and the underlying bill will provide MARTA the relief they've sought for several years, allow us the opportunity to continue the expansion conversations we all agree we need to have," Abrams said.
Gov. Nathan Deal huddled with legislative leaders on Wednesday to hash out the change, and Smyre helped sell it to Democrats. Smyre, the party's go-to guy on transportation, said Fulton and DeKalb counties wouldn't be able to raise their sales taxes either way because they've already reached a cap.
The changes sparked little outcry in either chamber, and they passed with only scattered opposition. State Sen. Vincent Fort, his chamber's No. 2 Democrat, said one reason for the muted response was that his caucus was already satisfied with other concessions made by Republicans, some that may not manifest until after the session.
"The deal got done because Senate Democrats stood together on the first vote and sent the message that we were serious about making sure the bill was serious and we got a better bill," said Fort. "I don't feel betrayed. But the reality is, the bill that came out of the House, with 60 Democrats voting for it, was just not a good bill. I'm glad we stuck together and stood strong to get agreements that made it better."
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