The Free Times

One Hurdle Left for Transit Tax Vote

Richland County Sales Tax Could Rise to 8 Percent

By Nick McCormac

The Midlands’ public bus system will stay afloat and roads, bike paths and other
transportation infrastructure in Richland County will be improved, but the sales tax in
Richland will go up to 8 percent to pay for it all.

That will be the outcome of a referendum in the Nov. 4 elections if County Council
approved the ballot question July 22 in a meeting scheduled for after press time, and if
voters’ feelings about it match the prevailing sentiment at a public hearing the council
held on the measure July 15.

The majority of speakers at the hearing expressed strong support for the proposed 1
percent sales tax increase, which would raise an estimated $521.4 million over eight
years to fund the ailing mass transit system, improve roadways, provide more bike lanes
and build sidewalks.

Many of the speakers were cyclists voicing concerns about the perils of riding a bike in
Columbia. For some, it is their main form of transportation and safe bike lanes are a
necessity.

“People need choices when it comes to transportation,” said Natalie Britt, director of the
Palmetto Cycling Coalition. “A connected, balanced system provides more opportunities
for everyone.”

If voters OK the referendum, 15 percent of the tax revenue would go toward new
pedestrian walkways and almost 120 miles of new bike lanes.

Aside from more bike paths, sidewalks and greenways, one of the more pressing issues is
the financial state of the Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority (CMRTA). The
authority operates the bus system, which has been running off capital gained when South
Carolina Electric & Gas Co. transferred control of the system to the CMRTA in 2002.
However, those dollars are running out.

Some 25 percent of the money raised from the proposed tax hike would help to ensure
that the mass transit system would keep rolling. Without more funding, it is estimated that
the system will cease to exist next year.

Some supporters, like Columbia resident Cathy Warner, said it would be better to help the
struggling system now than to try and bring it back after funding runs out. “It’s much
easier to heal the sick than to raise the dead,” Warner said.
Councilman Mike Montgomery, who supports the tax hike, said that even though the plan
is not perfect it will benefit people who depend on bus service. “It’s not a question of if,
but when the money will run out, because it will,” Montgomery said.

Montgomery and the other supporters are not alone. In a recent poll conducted by the
Columbia Planning Department, 74 percent of respondents said they support the tax raise
compared to 26 percent who oppose it.

Some council members were not so quick to throw their support behind the referendum.
Val Hutchinson, vice chairwoman of the 11-member council, said she originally
supported the plan but can no longer do so. “This is the worst time to implement more
taxes,” Hutchinson said. “I can’t put the burden of this financing on the public.”

Other council members said it should be up to voters to decide the matter.