Atwater, Merced County support half-cent tax

Two governing boards in Merced County this week threw their support behind plans to put a half-cent sales tax on the November ballot.

The Atwater City Council voted 3-2 on Monday to support the half-cent sales tax measure, which is estimated to pool $615,763 a year in the city and $18 million in 30 years. Councilmen Brian Raymond and Joe Rivero cast the dissenting votes.

The Merced County Board of Supervisors voted 4-0 on Tuesday to support the measure. Advocates maintain that if the proposal is put on the November ballot and wins approval, it would raise $450 million countywide over 30 years for local and regional transportation projects.

Supervisor Deidre Kelsey was absent from that portion of the meeting.

To try to get support from cities on both sides of the county, the estimated $199 million generated for regional projects would be split into two pots of $122 million for the east side and $77 million for the western region. The east side would get a larger amount because it has a larger population and more roads, according to Stacie Dabbs, the spokeswoman for the Merced County Association of Governments.

This is the fourth attempt at a transportation ballot measure to fix deteriorating roads. This time around, money generated from a half-cent sales tax would be used for repairing and maintaining roadways, repairing sidewalks and increasing safe routes to schools.

Dos Palos and Gustine voted earlier this year to support the measure, but recently it has seen some “minor language” changes, so the process started over, Dabbs said. If at least four cities support the effort, the county and the association’s governing board can vote to put it on the ballot in November.

Voters will have the final say, and the measure would need 67 percent of their support in November to be approved. A survey late last year showed about 71 percent of likely voters would support the tax.

The association is set to ask for the city of Merced’s support on Monday.

Richard Schwarz, assistant public works director for the county, noted earlier this month that the measure would still fall short of all the fixes the county needs in its 1,700 miles of roads.

“Will it solve the problem?” he asked this month. “It won’t even come close.”

This story was originally published April 26, 2016 at 6:46 PM with the headline "Atwater, Merced County support half-cent tax."