Across Michigan, several cities voted on bus millages on Tuesday, mostly with very positive results:
- Saginaw News: Voters approved a 3-mill three-year tax renewal for Saginaw Transit Authority Regional Services, by a vote of two to one. The renewal will allow officials to maintain services and enable buses to run until 8 p.m. weekdays. Today, service stops at 6:45 p.m. City voters rejected a similar STARS tax request in 2004 and approved the existing tax by just 81 votes the following year.
- Monroe News: Voters in both the City of Monroe and Frenchtown Township approved a five-year, .75-mill tax levy proposal to help fund Lake Erie Transit, which provides public bus transportation on dedicated routes and dial-a-ride service in the township. This proposal asked for .25 mill higher than an existing levy that expires in 2008, but LET officials plan to levy only what is needed as the budget changes during the next five years.
- Kalamazoo Gazette: City voters have passed every Metro Transit tax request since 1986, and Tuesday’s final request was no exception. A one-year renewal of 1 mill passed in all 25 city voting precincts, making a final tally of 5,907 “yes” votes to 2,311 “no” votes. The 1-mill renewal is expected to contribute about $1.7 million in tax revenue to Metro Transit’s $14.5 million budget next year. Officials said the cost for the average city homeowner would be about $45.
- Leelenau Enterprise: Bay Area Transportation Authority’s (BATA) request for a renewal of .35 mills for five years was overwhelmingly supported by voters in Leelanau and Grand Traverse counties by a more than 3-to-1 margin.
Not all the news was good however:
- Lansing State Journal: A proposed operating millage for the Capital Area Transportation Authority was soundly defeated. CATA officials said the approval of a millage that would grow annually over the next four years was necessary in the light of decreased transportation funding available through the state. Riders Tuesday hoped the tax proposal would pass so that users wouldn’t have to pay more than the $1 per ride they now pay.
Another interesting note – tax increases for local road repairs didn’t do very well:
- Monroe News: A tax to improve local streets . . . was defeated by Luna Pier voters on Tuesday.
Proposal 1, a half-mill levy for four years to pay for improvements to local streets and parking lots, was defeated 274-184. If it had passed, it would have generated about $45,000 in income. - Lansing State Journal: Voters also struck down a tax increase to pay for street construction in Charlotte and a tax boost for road repairs in Meridian Township.