Mayor Stanton Ties Phoenicians to the Tracks

This August, Phoenicians will vote on the largest tax hike in the history of the city. Mayor Stanton and council member Thelda Williams are asking voters to voluntarily get fleeced, just so that the light rail gravy train can keep running until it busts the city’s budget beyond repair.

This is the Phoenix Light Rail Train Wreck and it could be coming to a street near you, if we don’t work together to stop it. Not only is light rail ridership a tiny fraction of the more efficient bus system, but it costs many times over what the city spends on buses.

Wasting $30+ Billion with B sounds bad enough, but wait until you see the details of what Prop 104 will mean for Phoenicians. Don’t let Mayor Stanton and his bloated bureaucrats tie Phoenix’s financial future to the tracks:

• City tax was set to be reduced by .4% in 2020
• Proposal continues this 0.4% and adds 0.3% , breaking the promise made to Phoenix voters in 2000
• If approved by voters, the total city sales tax rate = 9.6%
• This astronomical tax rate would be permanent through the year 2035
• This is effectively a 12% raise the cost of sales tax for every purchase Phoenicians will make for the next two decades
• Total Transit Proposal = $31.5 Billion
• Total Rails = 41.2 Miles
• Cost / Mile = $161,650,485/Mile ($6.66 Billion)
• The current light rail system operates at a steep loss and increasing the size would only compound that problem
• Daily bus ridership is nearly 5x that of daily light rail ridership
• The tax revenue would be enough purchase a brand new fuel efficient BMW Hybrid Sedan for every Phoenix household
• 1 Mile of Light Rail costs as much as the combined salary for 2,944 Teachers
• The tax is regressive and plays favorites by exempting luxury items, costing $10,000 or more
• The city could pay for a 4 year business degree for every adult resident with this amount of money, instead of wasting it on light rail