Metro Phoenix mayors blast Legislature, vow to go to voters with transportation tax

Mayors across Maricopa County are threatening to take matters into their own hands after state legislators and the governor failed to find a compromise to allow voters to consider a measure extending a sales tax to fund transportation projects.

The Republican-majority Legislature sent a bill to Gov. Katie Hobbs on Tuesday laden with partisan priorities, like axing a light-rail expansion to the state Capitol and preempting bans on gasoline-burning vehicles. Conservative lawmakers declared victory on behalf of taxpayers.

Hobbs, a Democrat, immediately pledged to veto the bill, saying Republican leadership was "holding our state's economic potential hostage."

In reaction, six mayors signed and issued a letter pledging to take the tax extension to voters directly through "another avenue" in 2024 if no solution is reached. Later in the day, peers across the region joined in condemnation of lawmakers' efforts.

The letter called the bill sent to Hobbs on Tuesday "special interest legislation that seeks to derail our booming economy" and added that it came from a very small group of lawmakers.

Mayors who signed the letter, which accused the Legislature of "California-style gridlock," included:

• Kate Gallego of Phoenix

• John Giles of Mesa

• Corey Woods of Tempe

• Kevin Hartke of Chandler

• Brigette Peterson of Gilbert

• Kenn Weise of Avondale

The leaders represent some of the state's biggest cities.

The mayors wrote that they had conceded on more than 30 points to try to secure a deal but that the "uncompromising band of lawmakers" were "spouting half-truths" and pushing priorities that don't "mesh with the realities" of Maricopa County's fast-paced growth.

What the other side said: Republicans in Legislature send Hobbs transportation tax plan for Maricopa County; governor to veto

"We are unalterably opposed to their plan, and if no solution is reached, we will have no choice but to pursue another avenue to get this before voters in 2024," the letter says.

Voters last approved the half-cent sales tax through Proposition 400 in 2004. The tax, first approved in 1985, expires in 2025.

Conservative lawmakers oppose light rail, mass transit projects

Conservative lawmakers opposed a renewal of that plan, saying mass transit projects, and light-rail extensions in particular, were a waste of money and didn't serve their constituents. They said their resistance to funding such projects was an act of defending taxpayers and commuters.

"Senate and House Republicans showed that bold conservative leadership produces smart, comprehensive public policy that best serves the interests of the constituents who elected us," Sen. Jake Hoffman, R-Queen Creek, and leader of the Freedom Caucus, said in a statement after the vote. He called on the governor to sign the "smart pro-commuter, pro-taxpayer plan."

The Freedom Caucus released a statement soon after the Senate’s passage of the bill, calling it a “major victory.”

Light rail was the focus of GOP ire.

Rep. John Gillette, R-Kingman, said he sees Hobbs’ Prop. 400 plan as a “pathway to the Green New Deal” and derides electric railways as “1800s technology.”

“It should be removed and replaced with the internal combustion engine,” he told The Arizona Republic.

“Most of us think that light rail should be a question that should go to voters to decide,” said Rep. Justin Heap, R-Mesa. “If the voters want light rail, then it’s appropriate. From what we can see right now, it’s not really that popular with the majority of the population, and it costs the state money. We lose money for every person that rides the light rail.”

Light rail was pushed initially as a system that would reduce the number of cars on the road, but he said it did “the opposite ― it’s narrowed roads down, it’s made traffic worse, and it certainly hasn’t made a dent in our freeways.”

Mayors, county supervisors: 'An absolute sense of anguish'

Local mayors and transportation officials who spent the past two years devising an investment plan for future highways, bus routes and light rail say an extension of the tax is crucial for the economic vitality of the region. They also stress quality of life for existing residents, saying planned improvements will maintain low commute times.

The transportation tax is responsible for building out the region's highways, including Loops 101, 202 and 303, and the Valley Metro light rail in Phoenix, Tempe and Mesa. It provides critical funding to operate the Valley's public bus system and paratransit service for people with disabilities. It also opens the doors to billions in federal funds through matching grant dollars.

Maricopa County is the only county in Arizona that has to get the Legislature's permission to be able to ask voters if they want to approve a transportation tax. That has frustrated local leaders, who say the tax extension is being jeopardized despite their belief voters would overwhelmingly support it.

Related: Why the Arizona Legislature will shape the future of transportation in Maricopa County

"We are united. Legislators and the Governor must give the people of Maricopa County the ability to vote on a Prop. 400 extension, one that maintains the support of all local mayors which was built over years of research, discussion and compromise," County Board of Supervisors Chairman Clint Hickman and Vice Chairman Jack Sellars said in a prepared statement.

"This isn’t about anybody’s pet project, and it shouldn’t be derailed by anyone’s personal vendetta. This is about the shared goal of improving quality of life for all residents," the supervisors added.

Hickman brought up the Prop. 400 impasse at the regular board meeting, saying there is "an absolute sense of anguish among the mayors."

Around the Valley, from east to west, other mayors shared in their disappointment with lawmakers, blasting them for ignoring numerous concessions, the will of voters and bipartisan planning, and for jeopardizing the region's economy.

“When you get 32 separate mayors, tribal organizations and counties to vote unanimously on something and stick with it for years — defend it, fight for it — that is something that is admirable and shows how important this is,” Avondale Mayor Kenn Weise said.

Gilbert Mayor Brigette Peterson echoed the shared letter, siding with what she called "a bipartisan group of fellow mayors" in condemning the bill passed by lawmakers and calling for a way to get a transportation plan to voters next year.

Mesa Mayor John Giles said the same, noting lawmakers "chose traffic congestion, fringe special interests and sprawl over the interests of Maricopa County residents."

Tolleson Mayor Juan Rodriguez voiced a common complaint among peers, that the action at the state Capitol could hurt economic development in his city.

In Scottsdale, which has not been the most ardent supporter of transit projects, Mayor David Ortega said the same in a prepared statement.

In transit-friendly Tempe, Mayor Corey Woods told The Republic: “If this does not go through the way that we need, the city of Tempe would lose roughly one-third of its transportation funding,” adding, “That’s just unacceptable. Our residents expect better, they deserve better, and we have to continue to fight for a solution that actually works for the city of Tempe and works for the entire region.”

Chandler Mayor Kevin Hartke, who has served in multiple leadership roles within the Maricopa Association of Governments, a regional planning agency, said, “I was quite disappointed a year ago when Gov. Doug Ducey vetoed the bill, and I was disappointed again when our legislators threw some things in there that have not been part of the negotiations and then attributed the problem to MAG.”

“Ultimately, I don't know where this is going to go, but our Valley needs to have a comprehensive transportation system to flesh it out in the West Valley, Central and East Valleys,” Hartke said. “(The original plan was one) that we have crafted with 32 leaders, and it really gave every city something. The Legislature’s plan really does not.”

Fountain Hills Mayor Ginny Dickey warned that defunding mass transit could harm Maricopa County's air quality and expose the region to federal environmental sanctions.

“I understand that some folks are not happy about the options (such as transit investments) that have been talked about by MAG to try to mitigate some of this air quality stuff. But without it, we do run the risk of being downgraded,” Dickey said. “Good, bad or indifferent, whether people disagree with the EPA standards, those are what exist.”

Goodyear Mayor Joe Pizzillo focused on the need for the proposed State Route 30, one of the key projects in possible jeopardy.

"Passing unworkable legislation and public disagreements will only hurt our residents, our businesses, and our state’s future vitality,” Pizzillo said in an interview.

In Litchfield Park, which has no Prop. 400 projects, Mayor Tom Schoaf chimed in with his criticism of the Legislature for disregarding voters and a plan backed by unanimous consent among the cities.

“It’s disappointing at best when a few legislators can overrule the will of the majority of people in Maricopa County,” said Schoaf.

Are there alternatives to legislative approval?

The sales-tax extension potentially could find its way to voters' 2024 ballots without legislative approval if the mayors collect enough petition signatures to qualify the measure.

Petition-based measures are typically difficult to bring to fruition because of the immense number of signatures required, but they aren't unheard of.

Petitioning to get a measure placed on the ballot was how Arizona legalized recreational marijuana in 2020 through Proposition 207. The mechanism also was used to raise the state's minimum wage in 2016 through Proposition 206.

Reporter Taylor Seely covers Phoenix for The Arizona Republic. Reach her at tseely@arizonarepublic.com or by phone at 480-476-6116. She's on Twitter @taylorseely95.

Arizona Republic reporters Stacey Barchenger, Ray Stern, Mary Jo Pitzl, Sasha Hupka, Maritza Dominguez, Sam Kmack and Alexandra Hardle contributed to this article.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Maricopa County mayors reject Legislature's transportation tax plan