ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Phoenix, Arizona
regional planning agencies
Designates the metropolitan
planning organization as the regional planning agency and reorganizes the
regional transportation planning authority within the regional planning
agency. Allows the voters of a county
with a population of 1.2 million or more persons to approve an excise tax of no
more than a ˝ cent for ten years or less for public transit beginning January
1, 2006.
Metropolitan planning
organizations (MPO) are federally recognized entities that are charged with
developing the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP), which identifies all
transportation projects within a region and performs other regional planning
duties as well. As the designated MPO,
the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) essentially sets the
transportation priorities for the region and incorporates regional transit
projects within the TIP and the long-range plan.
In 1985, the Legislature
passed a law enabling the citizens of Maricopa County to vote on a sales tax
increase to fund regional freeway improvements and provide for the creation of
the Regional Public Transportation Authority (RPTA). In October of that year, Maricopa County voters approved a ˝ cent
sales tax to fund freeway construction and provide $5 million (inflated
annually) for regional transit service expansion. The RPTA will receive this funding through 2005.
The MAG transportation
planning process is currently supplemented by the transit planning efforts of
the RPTA. S.B. 1029 combines the
transit planning efforts, designates MAG as the regional planning agency (RPA)
and moves the RPTA within the organizational structure of the RPA. This legislation also requires the Maricopa
County Board of Supervisors, upon approval of the voters, to impose an excise
tax of no more than a ˝ cent for transit funding for ten years or less. According to MAG, the ˝ cent excise tax will
raise an estimated $375 million in FY 2005-2006.
1. Designates the MPO of a county with a population of 1.2 million or more persons and a county with a population of 400,000 or more persons but less than 1.2 million persons as the RPA of the respective counties.
2. Allows the RPA to be redesignated by an agreement between the Governor and local governments that together represent at least 75 percent of the affected population including the central city.
3. Codifies the powers and duties of the RPA authorized by the Federal Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1998 and incorporates the powers and duties of the MPO as authorized by state statute.
4. Transfers the regional public transportation authority and its powers and duties under the purview of the RPA in a county with a population of 1.2 million or more persons.
5. Removes the RPTA’s bonding authority.
6. Eliminate the monies appropriated to the public transportation fund by each city that is a member of the regional public transportation authority, a member county and a county that has not elected to enter into the authority.
7. Removes the RPTA participation in the travel reduction program regional task force.
8. Allows the voters in a county with a population of more than 1.2 million persons to vote to impose a county public transportation excise tax beginning January 1, 2006.
9. Requires the County Board of Supervisors to prepare and distribute a publicity pamphlet to each household with a registered voter explaining the provisions of the transportation excise tax.
10. Requires the County Board of Supervisors, upon approval of the voters, to impose a transaction privilege excise tax on business within the county of a rate no higher than ten percent of the state transaction privilege tax rate as of January 1, 1990.
11. Limits the imposition of the excise tax to ten years.
12. Requires the revenues generated from the tax to be deposited in the public transportation fund.
13. Allows the RPA, by resolution, to request the County Board of Supervisors to place the transportation excise tax on a special election or general election ballot.
14. Allows the RPA to use 20 percent of monies in the public transportation fund for operations of the regional public transportation system.
15. Prohibits the use of the public transportation fund for activities relating to an election regarding taxes.
16. Repeals the transportation excise tax for roads in a county with a population of more than 1.2 million persons in January 1, 2006. This tax will end after 2005.
17. Removes the RPTA and the regional transportation authority from the definition of a “special district”.
18. Requires the citizens transportation oversight committee to review and advise the governing body of the regional planning agency on matters relating to public transit.
19. Repeals the Department of Transportation’s authority to participate in regional transit planning, coordination and demonstration activities.
20. Transfers pending or completed contracts, orders and judicial or quasi-judicial actions, personnel, property and records from the RPTA to the RPA.
21. Transfers monies in the public transportation fund repealed by this act to the public transportation fund established by this act.
22. Stipulates that rules adopted by the RPTA remains effective until superseded by rules adopted by the RPA.
23. Makes technical and conforming changes.
24. Provides for a general effective date except as otherwise indicated.
Prepared by Senate Staff
February 5, 2001