Voters approving Everett Transit measure

EVERETT – Though the numbers were close, voters Tuesday night appeared to be approving a tax increase for Everett Transit.

Proposition 1 would double Everett Transit’s share of the local sales tax from 0.3 percent to 0.6 percent. With the referendum looking likely to pass, retail customers in Everett would pay a sales tax of 8.6 cents per dollar, instead of the current 8.3 cents.

Mayor Ray Stephanson said he hoped for a clear margin of victory, but with a new primary system and expected low turnout, the proposition’s success was “a real question mark.”

“If (the numbers) stay the way they are, I would be very pleased that our voters recognize the value of good public transit in our community,” the mayor said.

Everett Transit had warned that if the tax referendum failed, it would have to cut service by 9 percent. The agency said without the additional tax money, it could be forced to eliminate weekend service and possibly trim weekday night and even daytime service. Everett Transit slashed service 14 percent last year.

If the measure passes, Everett Transit will expand its service to keep pace with job and population growth, agency officials said.

“I would ensure that, given the trust that (residents) have given us, that we will be very prudent in how we use this resource to improve transit service,” Stephanson said.

Supporters of the tax increase pointed out that the tax rate has been 0.3 percent since 1978. The past few years, the agency has lost revenue from statewide tax changes and from sales-tax revenue that has dropped because of the weak economy.

No organized opposition arose against the tax increase, although some car dealerships worried it would spur customers to buy their cars in neighboring Skagit County, where the sales tax rate is around 7.8 percent.

Casey Salz, an owner of Brien Ford in Everett, was skeptical of Everett Transit’s claims that better service would lure more people to leave their cars at home and ride the bus.