During the SacMoves Coalition meeting today, a major topic was information and questions about transportation funding.

STA (Sacramento Transportation Authority) has a funding committee looking at the idea of a 2026 ballot measure for a half-cent transportation sales tax. SacRT is also participating in this effort. The committee will make a recommendation to the board, perhaps in August or September. STA is also reaching out to the transportation agencies, and councils and boards, to gather their ideas and interests. STA will do polling on support for a measure, but not for a while, until the proposal is better defined. STA might decide not to run a measure in 2026, but delay until 2028, though everyone recognizes that funding needs are now. (Added note: STA does not at this time have the authority to offer a measure for less than the entire county, but could receive that under AB 1223. Update: AB 1223 has passed the Assembly, and Senate committees, but has not been scheduled for a floor vote.)

SacRT is continuing to think about a transit-only (or transit primarily) sales tax measure. It might well be for a portion of the transit district, as law allows, perhaps City of Sacramento and City of Elk Grove, as those are transit-supportive areas. It would likely be for less than a half-cent, probably quarter-cent. SacRT would not offer a measure in competition with a STA measure, but might if STA did not.

The idea of a citizen measure, which requires only 50% to pass rather than 67%, is not off the table but is not being actively pursued. Supporters of the idea are waiting to see what STA and/or SacRT come up with, and determining whether it is viable and responsive. Running a citizen measure is very expensive, for signature gathering and marketing. It is not clear whether there is money in the community to accomplish this. The 2022 ‘citizen’ measure, which spectacularly failed, was bankrolled by deep-pocket developers.

There are also ongoing discussions among transportation and equity advocates about whether sales tax is the appropriate funding mechanism. Sales taxes are very regressive, weighing most heavily on lower income citizens, and other options are less so.

Minutes from the meeting, generated by Zoom’s AI Companion, will be posted in the near future.