by admin | Mar 20, 2018 | Uncategorized
For years advocates for light rail have been trying to convince the legislature to allow Maricopa County to extend the 1/2 cent transportation sales tax (currently set to expire in 2025) to include billions more for light rail. They know that they can’t pass light rail by itself, so they have been looking for ways to sneak it by lawmakers by tying it to other more popular transportation projects.
Their solution is SB 1147, a poorly crafted transportation omnibus bill that would eliminate the statutory spending caps on how much money can go toward light rail and other wasteful transit projects. The bill would also remove the requirements that funding go toward freeways and other regional roads, unnecessarily create duplicative and confusing new statutes for rural counties and allow new tax hikes to be considered on off-cycle election dates that are notorious for low voter turnout.
The evidence that light rail and similar fixed line transit is a bad deal for taxpayers is overwhelming. In 2017, the Free Enterprise Club published a study on the future of transportation policy in Maricopa County and the value of light rail in the Phoenix Metro Area. The conclusion was that light rail is a bad deal for taxpayers, commuters, non-politically connected landowners and anyone else that relies on the current bus transit system. Additionally, a cursory review of the wild-eyed economic development claims being made by proponents of rail are easily disproven as well.
The most critical facts when considering light rail include:
- Light rail will NOT reduce traffic congestion–it will INCREASE traffic congestion
A common myth pushed by proponents of light rail is that it will help in getting people off the roads and into public transit. The fact is that light rail will increase traffic congestion, and there are a couple of reasons for this. First, the only way to accommodate the new rail line will be to remove street lanes currently used by automobiles. And since street lanes can move more traffic per hour than light rail, congestion will be greater along the line. Secondly, since the rail line is moving at street grade, it will have to receive priority at every traffic light. This will disrupt signal coordination systems, spreading the disruption well beyond the light rail intersections. That is why every independent traffic analysis that has been done concludes that light rail increases traffic congestion.
- Light rail will NOT increase transit ridership and will HURT bus ridership
Another argument made by the light rail lobby is that building light rail will increase transit ridership. The fact is most light rail passengers are either individuals who already use transit or passengers who were forced onto light rail when existing bus service along the rail line was eliminated. Additionally, since rail costs substantially more to operate than buses, over time light rail will crowd out bus service and will result in a reduction of bus lines in the Phoenix metro area.
This is not speculation—this exact scenario has played out in every city that has built light rail. For proof, here is a chart showing transit ridership in the Phoenix metro area since 2000, courtesy of Valley Metro:
As can be seen by the chart, transit ridership was increasing steadily from 2000 to 2008, prior to light rail opening. After light rail opened, bus ridership began to plummet and is now at levels not seen since 2003. Even more troubling, after a decade of growth annual transit ridership has been in decline. The 2017 figures were just released and annual transit ridership is now LOWER than when light rail opened in 2009.
- The Economic Development Claims are False
Knowing that light rail cannot be defended for reducing congestion or increasing transit ridership, advocates usually pivot to the claim that rail should be built since it promotes economic development. This claim is easily disproven as well. After a careful analysis of the figures provided by Valley Metro, the Club proved that most of the economic development credited to light rail was either “planned or committed” development, projects that had nothing to do with rail (like the Phoenix Convention Center) or were projects that never occurred.
After discrediting their figures in 2015, Valley Metro released a new analysis, now claiming that billions in constructed projects have occurred because of light rail. How did they reach this conclusion? Valley Metro is now assuming that light rail is responsible for ALL economic development that occurs within 1/2 mile of the rail line. Since the rail line is 26 miles long, that means they are including 26 SQUARE MILES within their analysis. The idea that light rail is responsible for all economic development in an area the size of Queen Creek is laughable.
- SB 1147 Ignores the Blossoming Self-Driving Transportation Revolution in our own Backyard
The final nail in the coffin for light rail is that it is more likely than not that drastic advancements in autonomous vehicles will render the service useless and unused. Thanks to Governor Ducey, Arizona has become a leader in promoting and developing self-driving technology, and it is anticipated that such cars will be available to the public in the next five years. The idea that we are going to commit billions to human-operated, fixed line rail through 2045 when the technology will be beyond obsolete would be a huge mistake.
If lawmakers believe there is a need to update our existing transportation statutes or even consider extending the Maricopa County transportation tax, policy makers should make sure that the money is used on productive transportation projects that include plenty of transparency and oversight. Without drastic changes to SB 1147, the bill will remain a train wreck for taxpayers.
by admin | Mar 15, 2018 | Uncategorized
If you enjoy using the internet, prepare to hide your wallet. A coalition of cities throughout Arizona have announced their intention to impose massive new tax increases on a wide array of currently untaxed digital products, targeting popular streaming services and applications such as Apple iCloud, LegalZoom and Pandora.
This outrageous plan to tax everything on the internet manifested itself from good faith legislation introduced at the Capitol earlier this year to clarify what digital products should (and should not) be taxed. Arizona law has been silent on the issue, and the Department of Revenue has struggled to develop rules to differentiate digital goods from digital services, which is an important distinction since Arizona has historically not taxed services.
HB 2479 and SB 1392 were introduced after lengthy bipartisan discussions that included input from the private sector and taxing entities, including the cities. The conclusion from those meetings was that taxing online digital services was a terrible idea that was contrary to legal precedent and would put Arizona at a competitive disadvantage, since most other states do not tax similar internet products.
Yet the allure of new revenue from internet taxation has led the League of Cities and Towns to oppose both bills. They have made it clear that no restrictions should be placed on their internet taxing powers, a radical position that could lead to digital goods and services becoming one of the MOST taxed items in Arizona. Even more stunning is that their plan is likely illegal and would violate federal law.
This is not an issue that lawmakers can remain on the sidelines. If local governments get their way, internet users will be hammered with a slew of new taxes, while digital startups and capital investment will be driven to other states much friendlier to the tech industry.
Action must be taken soon to protect taxpayers and slam the door shut on the digital internet tax. We urge everyone to contact your lawmakers to vote YES on HB 2479 and SB 1392.
by admin | Oct 29, 2017 | Uncategorized
The Following is a Press Release Issued by Citizens Against Prop 417, the Grassroots Committee Opposed to the Pinal County Transportation Tax Increase:
Casa Grande, AZ (October 30th)–In their effort to pass an illegal, unnecessary tax hike in Pinal County, the backers of Prop. 417 have raised $200,000 dollars from developers, lawyers, construction companies and auto dealers based in Maricopa County. To date the special interest funded “yes” campaign has outspent the opposition 30 to 1.
“It’s not surprising that well-funded special interests from Maricopa County want to raise our taxes. Many of these companies are going to profit immensely from Prop 417 while we are stuck paying the bill.” said Harold Vangilder, Casa Grande Resident and Chairman of Citizens against Prop 417.
According to their campaign finance report filed October 15th, the “New Roads and Freeways before it’s too late” committee raised 95% of their campaign war chest from Phoenix area special interests. Another $10,000 came from Texas. Less than 1% of the money raised in support of Prop 417 came from Pinal County.
“This entire transportation plan is bought and paid for by Phoenix area developers and lawyers.” Said Richard Brinkley, SaddleBrooke resident and Treasurer of Citizens against Prop 417. “Why should we pay for a tax hike that benefits them?”
In addition to Prop 417 being a Maricopa county funded scheme, all of the vendors used for the campaign are based outside Pinal County. Not a single person living in Pinal County was utilized in their campaign spending spree.
Opposition to Prop 417 has been growing rapidly over the last several weeks as Pinal residents learn more about the $640 Million tax increase. Not only is the current transportation tax being wasted and abused, but the County has been notified by a non-profit watchdog organization that Prop 417 is illegally drafted and will be heading to court if it passes.
“The County continues to ignore the legal issues associated with Prop 417, and now we find out that the entire campaign is being funded by outside interests that won’t even have to pay the tax.” Said Peggy Knowles, Pinal County resident and former President of the Republican Women of Pinal County. “Their hypocrisy and arrogance is unbelievable.”
The campaign finance report for “New Roads and Freeways before it’s too late” can be viewed by clicking HERE.
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Paid for by Citizens Against Prop 417. Not Authorized by any Candidate or Candidate Campaign Committee
by admin | Oct 2, 2017 | Uncategorized
Prescott is at a crossroads. Due to a crippling pension debt that has the city staring at possible bankruptcy in the next decade, the voters of Prescott will have an important decision to make in the upcoming election for Mayor.
Add in critical issues surrounding water and job crushing regulations, the decisions made by voters today will determine whether Prescott continues to grow and prosper for years to come, or begins down a path of financial and economic turmoil.
With two candidates remaining on the ballot following the August election, it is clear that Councilwoman Jean Wilcox would be the WRONG choice for Prescott Mayor.
Jean Wilcox has been a dedicated tax-and-spend politician from her first moments in office. She has publicly supported increases in the property tax, gas tax and a water tax. It’s hard to find a tax Wilcox does not want to raise.
Since being elected to Council in 2014, Wilcox has been beating the drum to raise taxes at every turn. The first tax increase she pushed for was an increase to the City’s sales tax in June of 2014. She had barely taken office but it did not take long for her to be convinced that increasing taxes was the only option for the city.
Wilcox then voted in June of 2014 to raise Prescott taxpayers’ property taxes. While casting her vote, Wilcox arrogantly stated that she was disappointed that they were “stuck” with Arizona’s voter enacted constitutional limitations on how high property taxes could go. Just two years later Wilcox voted again to raise property taxes.
After raising property taxes, Wilcox began pushing the council to increase water rates to pursue her environmentalist agenda and subsidize various crony capitalist pet projects. When it comes to municipal water service, taxpayers should have 100 percent confidence that water rates are based solely on the cost of providing the service. Water bills shouldn’t include extra taxes and fees to pay for special interest projects, which is exactly what Jean Wilcox wanted to do.
Jean Wilcox used her position on the council to work around these important protections for rate payers. Wilcox even entertained the idea that higher water fees could be cycled into select industries Jean Wilcox liked. In other words, she wanted to raise water rates in order to provide a few politically-connected commercial users with a subsidy.
What is even more telling of Jean Wilcox’s character is how she responded when voters didn’t agree with her high tax mentality. Two years ago, Councilwoman Wilcox pushed to roll a series of tax increases for open space, pension funding and street improvements into one package. The purpose of this maneuver was to increase the chances that her favored tax increase—more money for open space—would pass.
She failed in this endeavor to log roll the measures and the triple tax proposition went to the ballot as three separate proposals. After voters rejected two of the three measures, Wilcox expressed her disgust for taxpayers, stating those who did not vote for the tax were duped and that they “don’t understand that paying this tax will benefit the whole community.”
Just as startling as her support for higher taxes, Jean Wilcox has also been a staunch advocate for more gun control. At a council hearing last July, Wilcox stated that any discussions related to guns is really part of a “much bigger problem” that involves too little gun control. It is not clear what gun restrictions Wilcox would like to implement in the City of Prescott, but it is in voters best interest not to find out.
Don’t let Prescott fall into the trap of higher taxes, regulations and more gun control. Vote against Jean Wilcox for Mayor.
by admin | Sep 25, 2017 | Uncategorized
Goldwater Letter to Pinal County
by admin | Feb 23, 2017 | News and Updates, Uncategorized
We see a lot of bad ideas down at the legislature. A lot. But every once in a while, one comes along that is so awful even we are mildly surprised by it.
Behold HB2492.
Special property tax giveaways for some business but not others? Payroll tax handouts for large employers to subsidize new hires? Refundable tax credits that allow businesses to claim a refund even though they have no tax liability?
Wrap all these into one big monstrous giveaway and you have HB2492.
For starters, some of the large corporations that will benefit from this bill already do not pay Arizona corporate income taxes. A decade ago the legislature removed the cap on the Research & Development tax credit, which resulted in some companies to claim an unlimited amount of tax credits to offset their corporate tax liability.
But unlimited R&D credits are only part of the benefit. If these credits exceed the companies’ actual income liability in a given year, they are able to carry-forward their credits for up to 15 taxable years. Essentially, it is quite possible that these companies will never again have to pay corporate income taxes in Arizona.
Now HB2492 takes these subsidies to a new level. HB2492 would allow corporations to take their unused R&D credits and convert them into refundable credits to offset any sales tax incurred for infrastructure and other capital expenditures they make in the state. If it seems strange to link two completely unrelated activities (R&D and private infrastructure spending), you’d be right. Perhaps muddying the waters is what it takes to hide a subsidy of this magnitude.
Since the current R&D tax credit program has been so popular, several corporations have accumulated an astronomical amount of unused credits to cash in on this deal. The latest report from the Joint Legislative Budget Committee shows that companies currently hold $1 Billion in carry-forward R&D tax credits. If HB 2492 passes, taxpayers will be writing subsidy checks to corporations for a long, long time.
Just as the Arizona legislature has been wise to reject risky public finance schemes such as Tax Increment Financing (TIF), they have also successfully never crossed the threshold of allowing refundable tax credits of this magnitude. The best tax system for economic growth is one in which taxes are as low as possible, but shared among the broadest base. Carving some taxpayers out of the pie, not only makes the pie smaller, but raises taxes for everyone left in the pie.
The legislation passed out of House Ways & Means last week by a vote of 5-4, for the sake of Arizona taxpayers let’s hope it doesn’t proceed any further.
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