Fiscal Note
No appropriation required.
Title
AMENDED SUBSTITUTE - Establishing Goals for Regional Transit Authority Legislation.
Body
WHEREAS, south central Wisconsin is becoming an integrated urban economy that is larger, more private-sector driven, and more geographically dispersed; and in this era of change, the Madison region needs a modern, efficient, regional, transportation system that is focused on connecting more people to jobs.
WHEREAS Madison’s transit ridership is near all-time highs, and per-capita ridership is in the top 15 in the nation, outperforming cities with far larger population such as Miami, FL(5.5 million), San Diego, CA (2.9 million), and the Twin Cities (2.6 million); and
WHEREAS, transit services in Wisconsin are regional in their service area, yet each is owned by a single municipality (Milwaukee’s transit system is owned by a county, although by a legal definition might also be considered a municipality); and
WHEREAS, to be effective and efficient transit systems should have regional governance, budgeting, operations, and planning; and
WHEREAS, regional transportation authorities (RTA) could provide a regional focus, create predictable and stable funding, and relieve pressure on property taxpayers, and
WHEREAS, state law must authorize a process and establish standards for the creation of an RTA, but the decision whether to actually form an RTA and how much funding it would need would be made by the local residents; and
WHEREAS, though enacting RTA legislation in Wisconsin is politically challenging, it is imperative that the city continue to push forward.
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the details of RTA legislation should be flexible enough to adapt to local needs; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that given the history and criticisms of RTAs, the authorizing legislation should have following basic parameters
• A representative RTA could be formed by two or more municipal governing bodies passing resolutions in support
• A referendum would need to be adopted by a majority of voters in each municipality forming, or seeking to join the RTA
• The amount level of the sales tax would need to should be authorized in the referendum, but could not exceed 0.5%
• The governing board would be comprised of elected officials, representative of the communities within the RTA area; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the city of Madison is committed to continuing discussions with community leaders, business and other local governments about advocating for RTA legislation.