ATLANTA - Mass transit advocates are celebrating Governor Sonny Perdue's signature of a bill that will allow a Clayton County vote on whether to invest a one cent sales tax in rail and bus service.

The Governor's office announced late Friday that Perdue had signed House Bill 1446.

“I am excited for the people of Clayton County and for all of us in Georgia,” said Lee Biola, president of Citizens for Progressive Transit. “Commuter rail stations would support town centers that are walkable and livable. This would give people a reliable way out of traffic.”

Clayton County voters will vote in November whether to join the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA).

While the November referendum will be non-binding, a “Yes” vote that day would open the door to a binding vote later.

The Clayton County Commission and MARTA would need to agree on a project list before bringing a binding vote to the voters. The project list is likely to include the Clayton County portion of the Atlanta-Macon commuter rail line.

The MARTA sales tax would raise substantially more money than Clayton County was spending on C-Tran, a bus-only service that shut down on March 31 of this year, so there would be plenty of funding for the rail line.

The Atlanta region's transit plan, Concept 3, shows rail lines converging on a multimodal passenger terminal in downtown Atlanta. The rail line through Clayton County stops in the cities of Forest Park, Morrow, Jonesboro, and Lovejoy.

Click here for Concept 3: The Atlanta Region's Long-Range Transit Vision

Please click here to read Citizens for Progressive Transit's May 2010 Newsletter.

House Bill 277 passed the Georgia General Assembly Wednesday night. It creates a process to allow voters to vote on a transportation project list and a sales tax to pay for it.

Key Players

Ga Dept of Transportation Dir. of Planning – Appointed by Governor

Local Governments

MPOs – Metropolitan Planning Organizations

Regional Roundtable – two representatives (one of whom is a mayor) from each county. Metro Atlanta roundtable will have additional seat for Mayor of Atlanta, for a total roundtable of 21 members.

Regional Roundtable Executive Committee – Voting: five representatives elected from regional roundtable; Non-Voting: two members of Ga House of Representatives and one state senator from the region

Key Dates

TBD – Ga Dept of Transportation Director of Planning develops “recommended criteria” for development of project investment list

September 30, 2010 – Deadline for local governments or MPOs to comments on “recommended criteria.”

November 10, 2010 – deadline to elect the mayoral representative from each county to Regional Roundtable.

November 15, 2010 – deadline for Director of Planning to finalize “recommended district criteria” for development of project list

TBD - Regional Roundtable meets. Regional Roundtable may amend or approve Director of Planning's “recommended district criteria” by majority vote.

TBD – local governments may submit projects to Director of Planning (no cost limit at this point)

TBD - Director of Planning submits “list of example investments” to executive committee of Regional Roundtable

TBD – Executive Committee shall choose from the “list of example investments” to create fiscally constrained “draft investment list.”

August 15, 2011 – Deadline to deliver “draft investment list” to local governments, MPOs, General Assembly members

TBD – At least two public comment meetings

October 15, 2011 – DEADLINE FOR REGIONAL ROUNDTABLE TO APPROVE INVESTMENT LIST

July 2012 – Voters vote whether to approve Project List and Tax to pay for it

Key votes on public transit are about to take place.

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Please click here to read Citizens for Progressive Transit's March 2010 Newsletter.