Janelle Irwin Taylor
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) star Titus O’Neil is backing the Hillsborough County transportation initiative on the November 6 ballot. O’Neil, who is a Hillsborough County resident, released a 1-minute video Thursday urging voters who haven’t already done so to vote yes on the All For Transportation referendum.
“This initiative will fund road and transportation improvements in every part of Hillsborough County. You know just as well as I do that traffic can be terrible and it’s only getting worse,” O’Neil said.
He also cautioned voters not to miss the referendum. It’s located on the last page of a long ballot and supporters are afraid voters will skip down ballot races like this one and turn in an incomplete ballot.
O’Neil is also a former professional football player and alumni of the University of Florida where he also played football.
All For Transportation would increase Hillsborough County’s sales tax from 7 to 8 percent and would raise about $280 million annually for both transportation and transit improvements throughout the county.
Of the funds raised, 54 percent would go to road and traffic congestion relief projects, 45 percent would go to the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority for transit enhancements and 1 percent would be used on oversight to ensure the funds are appropriately allocated.
O’Neil joins a long list of groups and individuals who are endorsing the plan.
Creative Loafing, a Tampa Bay area alternative weekly newspaper, endorsed the plan this week. It’s also backed by the Tampa Bay area business community including the Greater Tampa, Upper Tampa Bay and South Tampa chambers of commerce. All three Tampa Bay area professional sports teams and the New York Yankees have put financial resources into the campaign.
It’s also got backing from Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn, the Tampa Bay Times and Visit Tampa Bay.
The opposition group, No Tax for Tracks, came into the campaign late, but has been posting billboards opposing the tax throughout the county. The signs claim the tax is a $16 billion tax – a number that varies based on where you’re reading it. All For Transportation estimate would raise about $9 billion over its 30-year life. No Tax for Tracks has posted opposing material claiming the tax would cost $15 billion and, at the high end, $18 million.
2 comments
Karen Jaroch
November 2, 2018 at 3:06 am
Janelle, this tax will collect $9B over 20 years, but this is a 30-year tax and will collect a total of $16B. It is AFT who are mistaken if they are stating it will collect only $9B over 30 years. If you don’t believe NoTaxForTracks.com which has escalated the numbers conservatively using the MPO’s own factor for inflation/population growth to calculate “year of expenditure” amounts (required reporting format for cost estimates by Federal Highway Administration), ask the MPO directly. This is a 30-year tax, not 20-year, so I challenge you to follow up and print a retraction as you keep perpetuating this myth and continue to malign Notaxfortracks.com.
Jim Davison DO
November 2, 2018 at 9:13 am
Janelle, I have talked to several members of the groups you quoted as supporting this transit tax. After being shown the truth they were not to happy that they were conned. Those pushing this tax ,including you, are doing everything to prevent a true and accurate picture of what will happen with this tax from the amount it will collect, why it has to be 30 years, what it will do for congestion and how it will devastate suburban Hillsborough county to Tampa’s urban core. You have played a role in it. If you want to see what is wrong in America today, why there is so much violence you need look no further than the pages of the Times and Florida Politics. For money you can have the truth changed, people disenfranchised, healthy debate stopped and science disregarded. You have played a role in this and there is no way to get around that. You have broken every principle of journalism there is and it didn’t have to happen. It might not seem important now, but in 5,10, or15 years when the tax is collecting$400-$500 million a year and the people are sitting in their cars and buses stuck in traffic 2-3 times worse than it is today are you going to tell your children “I helped do this” or are you going to lie then too. This isn’t just marketing.
Comments are closed.