Toscano files bill on transportation tax

By Brandon Shulleeta

Published: January 15, 2009

A bill filed in the General Assembly on Wednesday would give Charlottesville and Albemarle County officials the power to hold a referendum on a sales tax solely for transit or other transportation projects.

A majority of residents would have to favor the new tax, and after multiple hearings officials would have to decide whether to impose up to a one percent tax — on top of the state’s five percent tax. Del. David J. Toscano, D-Charlottesville, championed the legislation.

All of the supervisors, except Kenneth C. Boyd, supported a resolution on Wednesday with similar language as Toscano’s bill. Boyd said he opposes tax increases during a recession and doesn’t believe that the state legislature should be excused for its failure to adequately fund transportation.

Supervisor Dennis S. Rooker said that the bill wouldn’t create a new tax but instead lets voters decide whether they’d be willing to pay more taxes for transportation projects in the area.

Rooker said that it sounds like Boyd doesn’t “trust the voters” to decide for themselves whether it would be worth paying the tax to fund transportation.

However, Boyd said, “We’re talking about a $26 million tax burden.”

Rooker said that Boyd’s statement was a “misrepresentation,” because the estimated $26 million in taxes to Charlottesville and Albemarle residents is the maximum burden the local governments could impose. They could choose to levy a tax that’s lower, or not impose one at all, Rooker said.

Boyd also argued that if supervisors want to hold a referendum that could ultimately lead to a major tax increase, they should start creating referendums about other important decisions.

Peter Wurzer, with the Albemarle Truth in Taxation Alliance, dismissed the idea that officials would turn down the sales tax increase if they had the authority.

The Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce also opposes a higher local real estate or sales tax to fund transportation or transit initiatives.

The chamber sent a memo to state lawmakers last month that said it “has grave concerns that such a tax increase may have serious negative consequences to our local retail enterprises, particularly during economic downturns and recessions.”

The earliest a new local sales tax could be enacted is 2010, officials said.

Toscano said Wednesday that the state isn’t adequately funding transportation projects, so localities should be given an opportunity to solve the problem themselves.

“This is not a proposal for a tax increase. It’s a proposal to empower voters to make decisions about the basic issues that affect their lives,” Toscano said. “If the voters want to tax themselves to fund transportation and transit initiatives, then this bill will give them the opportunity to do so, and that’s all it will do.”

Toscano, however, said that the chances of the bill actually getting passed by the General Assembly could be a long shot.

“I think that bill is a really difficult sell down here in Richmond right now,” he said.

“I think even to talk about a tax increase, even one that’s approved by the voters, is very difficult for legislators to approve.”

Toscano said that another bill filed under his name Wednesday is more likely to pass.

That bill would create a regional transit authority, which would allow the city and county to manage a transit system together. That bill has no funding component.

Slutzky said in a recent radio interview that the bill enabling a tax referendum would be “dead on arrival in Richmond” if Del. Rob Bell, R-Albemarle, does not support the bill.

He has yet to say whether he’ll support the bill.

Slutzky said that he would guess that the majority of the projects funded by any local sales tax would be non-transit works. Officials would not be able to guarantee in a referendum which projects would be funded because the county’s transportation priorities are subject to ratification, said Larry Davis, Albemarle County’s attorney.