Assembly Committee on Transportation Says
Overwhelming "YES" in Bi-Partisan Vote on RTA bill
April 1, 2010
See Legislative Council Summary of RTA Bill, AB-282
Madison, WI— In an overwhelming 8-2 bi-partisan vote, the Assembly Committee on Transportation passed a Regional Transit Authority bill (AB-282) reflecting the breadth and depth of support RTA legislation has gained among business, labor, minority, faith-based, environmental, and community groups in recent months.
“The strong show of support for RTA legislation is a big step forward for southeastern Wisconsin’s businesses and families,” says Kerry Thomas, Transit Now executive director. “The RTA bill is all about jobs and economic growth. Today's vote shows that there is statewide support for giving Wisconsin communities the tools they need to save their transit systems from further decline, and create good regional transit networks that are needed to get our economy moving and get people working.”
Transit connects people to jobs and supports business growth.
In Southeastern Wisconsin, however, transit service has been cut by 20 percent while fares increased by 50 percent in the past 8 years. Devastating cuts of 30 percent are projected for the next few years if a dedicated funding source, which RTA legislation will provide, is not found. Moreover, a recent University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee study found that 40,000 jobs have become inaccessible due to diminished transit services, a number that will climb to 100,000 shortly under the current trend.
“We join the growing number of business and community leaders in applauding Assembly Committee Chair Steinbrink and the dedicated and visionary Representatives and Senators who have worked tirelessly to keep this critically important legislation moving." Thomas said.
The next step for the RTA bill is a hearing in the Joint Committee on Finance. A vote by the full Assembly will be needed. We look forward to a collaborative effort in the Senate and for AB-282 to be brought to a vote soon.
“We must get this done. The costs of inaction are simply too high to allow this opportunity to slip by,” says Thomas, adding that ongoing loss of transit services will cause further unemployment, and cut people off from educational and employment opportunities while job creation and business expansion will go elsewhere. “Kudos to the dedicated lawmakers who are building this pathway to prosperity for Wisconsin.”
Scott Bernstein, co-author of a recent Center For Neighborhood Technology study, notes that when volatile gas prices and other economic factors are considered, facts clearly show transit to have a positive impact on neighborhood wealth and housing affordability.
“With good transit and efficient land use, households can save 10 to 20 percent of household income and generate more disposable income for savings—and additional spending power to support local businesses and strengthen neighborhoods in the community,” says Bernstein. “Transit will become more and more important to the success of cities and regions in the future.” (See more information.) “In Atlanta, for instance, the additional spending power created by Marta and availability of good transit equaled $2.2 billion between 1980 and 1994.”
This is borne out in the real estate industry where proximity to good transit attracts private investment and drives higher demand and stabilizes land values—even in a down economy. Stu Wangard, chairman of the Transportataion Committee of NIAOP, a commercial real estate development group, stated, “The quality of transit affects whether we invest or not. And, it has a huge impact on how fast we lease it up.”
Assembly Bill 282 is a statewide legislative council bill that was amended to include important provisions related to the creation of a Southeastern Regional Transit Authority, including strengthening of the property tax relief provision, as well as including the provisions for a Fox Cities RTA.