The governor has signed Assembly Bill 1086, which will allow Alameda County’s Transportation Commission to place a tax hike on the ballot for November 2012’s election. If the measure moves forward, it would help fund infrastructure and transportation projects. Patch reports that the legislation was needed because it “provides a one-time exemption from the existing 2 percent cap on local sales taxes. Recent sales tax measures approved in San Leandro and Union City would otherwise have prevented a countywide measure because it would exceed the 2 percent cap.” If county officials ultimately place the issue before voters, it will require two-thirds support from county voters in order to be enacted. Commissioners are reportedly still deciding on whether or not to extend the current half-cent countywide sales tax or to raise the tax to a penny. The bill was introduced by Assemblyman Bob Wieckowski, D-Fremont. The legislator released the following statement in light of the governor’s signature:
“The county is updating its transportation plan and this legislation gives it the option to ask voters to invest in long-term improvements in Alameda County. The potential is there to create jobs to repair our roads and maintain our infrastructure to meet the needs of local residents and businesses.”
Mark Green, chair of the Alameda County Transportation Commission, also released a statement:
“We appreciate Assemblymember Wieckowski’s leadership in authoring AB 1086, which allows Alameda County residents a choice to improve transportation throughout Alameda County. Governor Brown did the right thing in signing AB 1086 today since it supports his ideas of government reorganization throughout the state. It is now up to the elected officials in Alameda County to forge the creation of a new transportation expenditure plan that voters will approve in November 2012.”
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