Spokane Transit Authority Proposition 1

With Proposition 1, the Spokane Transit Authority is offering a scaled-back sales tax measure from the one that narrowly was defeated by voters in April 2015. It would raise sales tax a tenth of a penny on April 1, 2017, and another tenth of a penny on April 1, 2019, with both taxes running through Dec. 31, 2028.

The measure in 2015 would have raised the tax by three-tenths of a percent. Transit board members went back to the drawing board after the defeat.

If approved, bus service would be improved across STA’s service area, including Spokane Valley and the West Plains. The proposal would include new transit centers, longer bus hours, more weekend service and a new Central City electric bus line from Browne’s Addition to Spokane Community College including downtown and the University District.

The local sales tax would raise an estimated $200 million; in part this would capitalize on $86 million in state and federal grants.

Cheney Mayor Tom Trulove, an STA board member, said transit is important to Spokane’s economy, serving a growing population with alternatives to cars.

Opponents have objected to using a local sales tax rather than improving transit with existing tax revenue.

Voters in STA’s Public Transportation Benefit District, which includes Spokane, Spokane Valley, Cheney, Liberty Lake, Millwood, Airway Heights, Medical Lake, Fairchild Air Force Base and some nearby unincorporated areas near those cities, have a say on the issue.