Poll shows enough support for Merced County half-cent transportation tax

If a survey taken recently holds true, there would be enough voter support in Merced County to pass a sales tax measure for transportation projects.

About 71 percent of likely voters would support a half-cent sales tax that would generate about $15 million a year across the county, according to the survey delivered this month from San Mateo-based Godbe Research, a firm hired by Merced County Association of Governments.

The county would need a two-thirds vote, or about 67 percent, for the tax to pass in November. The tax increment would last for 30 years, amassing about $450 million in that time, and would be untouchable by the state, leaders said.

County Supervisor Hub Walsh said he has not made up his mind on the potential tax, but noted the measure would give voters the final say. Such a tax, he said, would make Merced a “self-help” county like Fresno, Madera and others in the state.

“Frankly, it puts you in a position potentially to be more competitive for grants and those kind of things that the state might not otherwise make available,” he said on Wednesday.

Those surveyed prized the repair of potholes on major and neighborhood streets over the other transportation projects, according to the report, including projects on highways 99, 59 and 152, as well as Campus Parkway in Merced and the Atwater-Merced Expressway.

Given the results of the survey, Godbe Research recommended that Merced County Association of Governments move forward with putting the vote on the ballot. The association’s board and local jurisdictions would need to make decisions on supporting the idea before it could be placed on the ballot.

The telephone and online survey, which had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.3 percentage points, took place during two weeks in November and Godbe took results from 853 people. There are more than 61,700 “likely voters” in the county, according to the firm’s report.

During the 2012 presidential election, though there were 97,990 registered voters, just 62,804 cast ballots, according to the Merced County Registrar of Voters Office. There are now 84,700 registered voters in the county, the office said Wednesday.

The details for the proposed tax are not final, but each city would receive a base amount of money – $150,000 a year, for example – and the remainder would be divvied up by population and the miles of road in each jurisdiction. The Bus would also get a piece.

This story was originally published December 23, 2015 at 5:51 PM with the headline "Poll shows enough support for Merced County half-cent transportation tax."