|
The
Herald
Published: January 18, 2001
'Legislator steps into bus fight'
Schmidt bill could force countywide merger vote
By
Warren Cornwall, Herald Writer
The fight over combining Snohomish County's two bus systems has moved to Olympia, with a bill aimed at forcing Everett to pay Community Transit millions of dollars or face an election to merge the systems into one.
The proposal would give Everett a chance to keep its own buses, while reimbursing CT for service to Everett residents now subsidized by state and county taxpayers, said Rep. Dave Schmidt, R-Bothell, the bill's sponsor.
"If the city of Everett wants to continue operating Everett Transit they can do so, but pay for the service you get," Schmidt said.
If the city refuses, it would trigger a countywide vote in 2001 on whether to extend the larger bus agency's sales tax collections to Everett, under Schmidt's bill.
With county residents far outnumbering Everett voters, Schmidt said the election's outcome would almost certainly favor one bus tax.
Everett officials, who expected Schmidt's bill, have criticized the plan for forcing the Legislature's will on a local debate.
City spokeswoman Dale Preboski reiterated the city's concerns about a merger: that it would weaken city resident's control over their bus service and would double the transit sales tax to 0.6 cents per dollar, with the potential for another 0.3-cent increase.
"I don't think there's anything new to say on this issue. The city has been clear about its concerns about local control and taxpayer issues," she said.
The city and CT have feuded over a merger for more than two decades. Community Transit officials have stepped up their campaign to combine the two agencies and gain $14 million a year in sales tax collections inside the city since the statewide Initiative 695 cut transit funding in 1999. Each agency collects sales taxes.
It's the second year Schmidt has stepped into the fray. Last year, a similar bill he sponsored died in the House Transportation Committee after committee leaders refused to schedule it for a hearing.
This year, Schmidt said he has the backing of 10 of the county's 11 representatives, with Everett resident Aaron Reardon, a Democrat, the lone holdout.
Rep. Pat Scott, an Everett lawmaker who opposed the merger and sat on the Transportation Committee, died recently, leaving the committee without a representative from Everett.
Reardon could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
The state also has more at stake now, because the Legislature gave CT money to fill the hole left by I-695, Schmidt said. Some of that $6.8 million may have supported CT bus routes that pass through Everett.
"The state is subsidizing the city of Everett," he said.
A recent report issued by CT claimed that it spends roughly $2.6 million more than it collects in fares while carrying Everett residents, while the city spends roughly $500,000 for service to riders from outside Everett.
CT officials have contended that combining the agencies would produce a more efficient transit system and could save up to $1.7 million a year.
Bob Ostrom, chairman of CT's board, said the board supported Schmidt's effort last year and would likely endorse it again.
While Ostrom said he wasn't thrilled at the prospect of state involvement, it may be needed to break the deadlock.
"This may be the only way that it's possible," he said.
|
