In an effort to improve Hernando County’s bus transit system, the Board of County Commissioners came to a consensus to provide matching funds for transit enhancements using the Ninth cent local option fuel tax. Since this tax will be dedicated to funding the transit enhancements instead of the road pavement management program as it does currently, Commissioners plan to replace that funding by increasing the 1-5 gas tax by 3 cents, bringing it up to the max of 5 cents.
The Board previously authorized enhancements to the transit system on Aug. 12, 2014. The target date for enhancements is the start of FY 2016 which is October 1, 2015.
Currently, Hernando County’s transit system operates 3 routes: purple, red and blue which serve both Spring Hill and Brooksville as well as both PHSC campuses. They recently put a bench and shelter amenities program in place and created a bus replacement program using new and transferred vehicles.
The planned enhancements include starting a new green route which would service Brooksville Tampa-Bay Regional Airport and Spring Hill Dr. The green route will extend to Pasco Hernando State College Spring Hill Campus. The existing purple route will be extended into Pasco County to connect with Pasco’s Route 21. Additionally, they plan to operate all routes every 60 minutes instead of every 75 minutes.
With these enhancements, the number of vehicles in service would increase from 4 to 7.
The total miles of service area would increase from 63 to 107. A big benefit to the school system, now that they are considering cuts to courtesy busing will be service to five additional public schools, bringing it to 14 schools served. The county plans to work with the school district to provide passes for students that need bus service. The private sector, will see an increase From 21 to 78 businesses and industries served. Most of the increase would be due to new service to the airport industrial park.
The county estimates that the total population served would increase from 86,848 to 111,396.
Commissioner Adkins asked about bus service for East Hernando. Mr. Pianta explained that service to the east end of the county has been placed in the transit development plan. It would serve Ridge Manor initially at peak service hours for the morning and afternoon commute to and from work.
The county applied for funding and funding has been authorized by the state through the FDOT and FTA. There is no additional funding requirements to run the red and blue routes every 60 minutes on the county’s end. However, there is a local funding match requirement for the new green route and extending the purple route. Some of the local cost will be offset by increased advertising and farebox revenue. The county estimates the local cost to be $643,425. This year’s FY 2015 funding is $323,524 which is funded through the transportation trust.
Staff provided the Board of County Commissioners with a few options for the Local Funding Match:
Fund it through the transportation trust fund
Fund it through the 9th cent local option fuel tax (collected on diesel and motor fuel) and do not replace the funding source for the roads management program
Fund it through the 9th cent local option fuel tax and replace the funding for the roads management program by increasing the 1 to 5 cents local option fuel tax (3 cents are still available to collect, collected only on motor fuel)
The Transportation Trust Fund is currently used to fund transportation division staffing, operating, and facility expenses. The FY millage levy is .7091. The county would need an additional $319,881 for FY 2016 to satisfy the funding match. In order to do this they would need to redistribute current funding priorities, use fund reserves, or increase millage levied by approximately .0469 of a mil to bring the transportation trust levy to .756. This would be a $4.69 increase on $100,000 in taxable value for the year. Commissioners did not see this as an ideal option since they would have to find roughly $320,000 worth of cuts, most likely to staffing. Additionally, only property owners bear the weight of the tax.
Ninth Cent Local Option Fuel Tax is currently used to fund the road pavement management program but can be used for public transit. The change would require a local ordinance change. The Department of Revenue estimates the revenue for FY 2015 to be $772,963. Commissioners preferred this method of funding the transit enhancements because it is balanced in that everyone pays, not just the property owners. It also would be a dedicated source to fund transit.
Commissioners plan to offset the funding loss of the road pavement management program from dedicating the ninth cent fuel tax to transit with the One to Five Cent local option fuel tax. While the 1-5 fuel tax cannot be used for transit, it can be used for the resurfacing and paving of existing roads. Since it is collected only on motor fuel, one cent of the 1-5 tax is not quite equivalent to one cent collected with the 9th cent tax. Brian Malmberg explained that they would have to collect 1.35 cents of the 1-5 fuel tax to equal 1 cent of the 9th cent fuel tax since the 9th cent is collected on both motor and diesel fuel. Therefore to cover the loss of the road pavement maintenance program funding, commissioners would have to raise the 1-5 fuel tax by at least 2 cents.
DOR estimated that the revenue for the 1-5 fuel tax in FY 2015 is $1,210,318 (using 2 cents of the 5) The county shares 4.47% of this revenue with the city of Brooksville which brings the final number to $1,156,217. With an additional 3 cents the revenue would increase to $1,816,478. After the city of Brooksville’s share it would leave $1,735,281. An increase of the 1-5 fuel tax requires a supermajority of the elected body.
With an increase of 3 cents, funds can be used to replace funding for the road pavement management program that is redirected to transit as well as a road construction program.
Currently $772,963 is used for the local road pavement management program from the 9th cent fuel tax. Taking this amount out of the 1-5 fuel tax revenue with a 3 cent increase would leave $962,318 per year available to Hernando County for other capital type projects.
Commissioners emphasized the importance of keeping a dedicated source of funding for our road pavement program. Commissioner Dukes stated, “We are one of the few counties in the state that have a dedicated roads system… If you use a tax that affects everyone that uses the road including visitors, that is as fair as this government can make it… I would really like to keep us in the forefront of a roads system in Hernando County that we can be proud of.” Commissioner Dukes also asked about the fuel tax in both Pasco and Citrus, which is 3 cents higher than Hernando in both counties.
Commissioner Rowden said,”We have to maintain it [the roads] to protect the money we have invested in it.”
Commissioner Adkins would like to see how many roads we pave or resurface every year. He stated, “We have a fantastic system in Hernando County. I’ve traveled adjoining counties and personally I am proud to be back on our county roads when I return. I don’t want to see it decline.”
Adkins motioned to use the 9th cent fuel tax for transportation funding, seconded by Dukes. The motion carried unanimously.
Prompted by Commissioner Dukes, Mr. Malmberg stated that the county uses absolutely every cent of the $775,000 for road maintenance every year.
In discussing how much to increase the 1-5 fuel tax, it was said that a 2 cent increase would be to maintain the program that we have plus some extra. Commissioner Rowden stated, “I think we have an opportunity to move forward and we should move forward with the three cents.”
Chairman Nicholson mentioned that if we do this (add 3 cents to the 1-5 fuel tax) the money can be spent anywhere in the county where ever the need arises.
There was consensus from the board to go with a 3 cent increase to the 1-5 local option fuel tax. The 9th cent local option fuel tax will be brought back to the board as a resolution to be used for transit. Another ordinance for the the additional 3 cents (an increase to 5 cents) for the 1-5 fuel tax will be brought to the board as well. Both ordinances will be discussed in a public hearing at 9:30am on June 23rd.
UPDATE: On June 23rd, the BOCC adopted an ordinance that increases the amount of the (1-5) Local Gas Tax levy from two cents to five cents, and “in so doing, dedicates two-fifths of the proceeds to the County’s current local street resurfacing program” The ordinance also “dedicates the proceeds derived from the County’s Ninth-Cent Fuel Tax levy to pay for the cost of providing public transportation.”