County Council to take public testimony on potential measure to fund transit, roads

The King County Council is holding a special evening session to take public testimony regarding County Executive Dow Constantine’s proposal to create a “Tax Benefit District”

By Mirror Staff Reports • February 3, 2014 5:20 pm
King County officials are considering a proposal to put a local funding measure for King County Metro on the April ballot. The proposal also includes a scheduled fare increase and a first-ever reduced fare for riders of limited means.
King County officials are considering a proposal to put a local funding measure for King County Metro on the April ballot. The proposal also includes a scheduled fare increase and a first-ever reduced fare for riders of limited means.

The King County Council is holding a special evening session to take public testimony regarding County Executive Dow Constantine’s proposal to create a “Tax Benefit District” (TBD) to meet future funding needs for King County Metro and county roads.

The event will begin at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 4, at the Ruth Fisher Board Room in Union Station, 401 South Jackson St., Seattle.

The TBD would have taxing authority and the ability to place a tax measure on the ballot.

The county notes that Tuesday night will be the only meeting held in the evening regarding the issue. The King County Council will take further comment and is expected to act on one of two proposals regarding the issue at 1:30 p.m. on Feb. 10.

With a temporary funding measure for transit set to expire later this year, and no comprehensive, state-wide transportation plan from Olympia yet, both Constantine and the Council have decided that the time to act is now.

According to projects from King County Metro, if a funding solution is not met, significant service reductions will have to be made at a time when ridership is once again approaching record levels.

In Federal Way, a small number of routes would possibly be eliminated, while others would see significant revisions if a funding solution is not found, according to Metro.