Link Board To Discuss Sales Tax Repeal Measure That Could Cut Funding By Millions
Board faction seeks to add measure to the November ballot that could repeal a sales tax increase approved by voters in 2019
The Link Transit Board of Directors will again consider putting a measure on the November 2024 ballot that would allow voters to repeal a sales tax increase they approved back in 2019.
That measure increased the sales tax that funds Link to 0.05% in 2020 and 0.06% beginning this year. Simply put, 60 cents of every $1000 or $6 of every $10,000 spent by consumers in Chelan and Douglas Counties goes to Link’s budget.
A conservative faction of the board tried three times to get a measure on the 2023 ballot that would give voters the option to repeal the second one-tenth increase from going into effect this year, but they failed and the board voted to table all discussion about the matter until March 2024.
Now that idea is back on the agenda for Link’s March 19 board meeting and it has other board members frustrated.
East Wenatchee City Councilman Rob Tidd is one of them.
“The citizens of Chelan and Douglas Counties voted in favor of Link Transit’s Vision 2020 expansion plan. This plan is working and continues to provide expanded and fare free public transportation. Any action by members of the Link Transit Board of Directors to reverse this vote of the people is irresponsible,” he said. “I hope that the citizens of Chelan and Douglas Counties pay particular attention to the actions of their elected officials who are pushing this agenda.”
Last year the pro-repeal faction consisted of Douglas County Commissioners Kyle Steinburg and Marc Straub, Chelan County Commissioner Kevin Overbay, Cashmere Mayor Jim Fletcher, Rock Island Mayor Randy Agnew and Entiat City Councilman Clay Brandenburg. All but Brandenburg are still on the board.
One of the leading voices in opposition to the plan was Wenatchee City Councilman Mark Kulaas. He has since left office and is no longer on the Link Board, but last July he chastised fellow board members in favor of the plan and said living in a democracy means sometimes the vote doesn’t go your way and you have to deal with it.
“Not every election’s gone my way but I’ve lived with it,” Kulaas said. “And I know that some people are dismayed that the voters approved the sales tax increase. Ok, well you know, there are a lot of elected officials I didn’t vote for – but I move on. So this really bothers me that this keeps coming back.“
If there is a do-over on the vote this fall and the second one-tenth increase is rejected, Link would be walking away from $40 million over 16 years, according to Link’s administrative staff last year. It would also mean Link would not be eligible to receive state transit dollars in the future.
Leavenworth City Councilwoman Anne Hessburg said the vote of the people should be honored and she does not support rejecting funding that would hobble Link’s ability to serve the community.
”Should the sales tax go back to a vote and be repealed, many of the services in the Vision 2020 plan would not be able to be implemented, and it is possible that some of the added services within the last three years would have to be reduced due to lack of funding,” she wrote. “With a reduction in services, we would likely see a reduction in staff. I don’t want to see Link Transit lose any of its wonderful staff. I believe our community deserves the robust public transit system they asked for with their vote.”
Link CEO Nick Covey confirmed that a repeal would require adjustments to both the operating and capital budgets, but said the board would have to decide how what those adjustments would mean to both budgets.
Overbay, Fletcher, and Agnew did not respond to requests for comment. I also reached out to the board chair, Chelan County Commissioner Tiffany Gering, and if I hear back from her I will update this article.
The March 19 board meeting will start at 3 pm in the board room on the third floor of Columbia Station at the corner of Kittitas and Columbia streets in Wenatchee. Public comments are welcome and can be sent to boardclerk@linktransit.com ahead of time or simply presented during public comments time at the beginning of the meeting. Link board meetings are also live-streamed online here and you can find the March board packet here. You can catch the meeting on Zoom here. The meeting ID is 813 7649 7949 and the passcode is 694835.
So far, I’m the only one to cover this story and I’ll write an update about what the board decides to do after next week’s meeting.
My Two Cents
Since 1984 the number of people living in Chelan and Douglas counties has increased by 67.6%, according to Chelan-Douglas Trends. That’s an increase of nearly 70% in just one generation. More people means more traffic and personal vehicles are expensive, not only to the people who own them but also to the agencies that are tasked with maintaining the public roadways. Quality public transit keeps personal vehicles off those public roadways, reducing wear and tear, thus saving the taxpayer money.
Quality public transit also provides reliable transportation to poor people who cannot afford to own a personal vehicle. While there are stereotypes and a stigma attached to public transit riders, the fact is that public transit is essential to the working poor. People who live in two-income households but cannot afford a second vehicle rely on public transit. So do many students.
But I’m not making a case for folks to vote in favor of sales tax dollars going to support Link Transit – the public has already voted on that.
And they approved it.
So that leaves me asking the same question as Tidd, Kulaas and Hessburg. Why are Overbay, Steinberg, Straub, Fletcher, and Agnew so committed to “relitigating” this issue and potentially overturning a decision the voters of our community have already made?
I wish they would explain their decision-making process – it seems like the least elected officials could do after they’ve spent so much time and public money trying to push through what can what can only be called a “do-over.”
But none of them have responded to my questions.
Wenatchee has one of the best small city bus systems I've ever ridden. Drivers are friendly. Busses are clean and on time. And the busses are electric and quiet. Traffic is increasing in the valley so the bus benefits everyone even when they are driving their cars.
I'm at a loss to understand why? What would proponents of a repeal gain? There has to be something in it for them. If not, then it's malicious intent. Perhaps they resent the free aspect of Link, that a large percentage of users are perhaps migrants or disabled or homeless. Hmmm? This sort of solidifies a concern I have had for years...that the same elected officials, usually conservative Repubs, also serve on all the local boards and committees. They make ALL the decisions. There is little diversity of opinion! If they persist with this repeal effort voted by the PEOPLE, might they just be biting the hands that feed them?Are any of them up for re-election?