Measure X: Tax for transit

THE CHRONICLE’S VIEW Measure X offers Contra Costa County residents a chance to put $2.87 billion toward transportation projects that include more BART cars, improved bus service and pothole repairs . ... It’s a comprehensive answer that goes well beyond adding costly freeway lanes or giant garages. DISSENTING VIEW

Contra Costa County voters should vote no on Measure X, a $4.9 billion, half-percent sales tax increase.

Transportation finance is at a crossroads. Fuel tax revenues are declining as vehicles become more efficient. Instead of modernizing user fees (such as imposing mileage charges), politicians propose new general sales taxes to close the shortfall.

To enable Measure X, Contra Costa Transportation Authority’s Sacramento lobbyists contrived urgency legislation to bust the county’s sales tax cap. AB1665 claimed that the East Bay alone is experiencing “unique fiscal pressures ... in providing essential transportation programs.” Yet $400 million of existing Contra Costa transit sales tax has been shunted to San Francisco’s Muni since 1978. For every $16 in taxable purchases here, one penny is sent to Muni and another cent to AC Transit. This diversion must be stopped before any new tax approval.

CCTA is fiscally irresponsible. The present tax expires in 2034, yet the authority seeks a new levy because debt service consumes 37 percent of tax revenue. Measure X includes giveaways to organized labor that would be unconstitutional if federal money were used.

Measure X’s promises are illusory because a board simple majority can amend them. This is a much lower threshold than in Alameda (two-thirds board vote) and Santa Clara (threequarters supermajority) counties.

Jason A. Bezis is a Lafayette attorney.