Transit tax 20 year impact for Orting

A blog reader shared that she wrote the following note to Representative Jim McCune and Senator Randi Becker, and received a response from McCune.

She emailed  me..."This is the info that I received from Jim McCune, I asked him to look into getting that tax off our license tabs, but sounds like they locked it in for about 20 more years.  So again, the small communities that are cut service, will continue to pay for something they didn't have and will have less of in the future. The east county area has a lot of low income people, and that added dollars on their cars, trucks, trailers, personal and work will continue to have to pay for the city people to ride the buses. This has been a beef with me for a long time..."

She emailed Becker and  McCune June 18, 2011...

"Thank you for all of your work this session.  Hopefully we are on our way to correcting some of the problems that we have created. In regards to the RTA tax, Pierce Co is cutting back service to many areas, including mine in Graham; how do we get that tax removed from our license tabs?  They even add the tax to my living quarters horse trailer;  my horse doesn't ride the train or the bus, but I am tempted to try just to make a point of it.  We are also retired so we don't ride the commuter train or bus anywhere."

McCune responded July 19, 2011... 

"Here is the information I received: After some extensive research, we cannot find a provision in the Sound Transit code allowing cities to redraw the lines on who is included and who is not within the Sound Transit boundaries.  There was a two-year window to be excluded from the Sound Transit boundaries from 1996-98, but this no longer applies.  If a city were to exclude itself from Sound Transit going forward, they would still have the taxes applied to pay off any existing bonds so we’re looking at least 20 years before you’re free and clear."