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Dukakis Center For Urban and Regional Policy Northeastern University School of Public Policy & Urban Affairs www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter A Think and Do Tank Lessons Learned from Recent Campaigns to Increase Local and State Transportation and Transit Funding Presented at the Transit Initiatives And Communities Conference Stephanie PollackJune 26, 2013

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Transit Funding: It Isnt Just for Capital Projects

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Transit operators are increasingly raising fares and cutting service

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter As funding gets tight, maintenance is deferred and system condition worsens

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter And transit systems State of Good Repair backlog grows

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter In this environment, expansion can become a dirty word

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter State and local governments, left to their own devices, will restrict funding on transit operations based on the income of their inhabitants, not based on need.... This is a paradox. The regions with relatively lower levels of poverty (such as Washington and Boston) can spend significantly more of their local and state funds on transit operations than regions with higher levels of poverty (such as Detroit and Memphis. Yonah Freemark The Transport Public March 12, 2013 If not addressed, undermine ability to secure funds for capital projects If not addressed, transit advocates can be pitted one against another State and local government may not have the resources to provide needed operating funds Therefore, funding needs to address operating deficits and maintenance needs

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Maximizing transit share of available federal funds through the Metropolitan Planning Organization Increasing total state spending on transportation and the share that goes to transit for operations, maintenance and new capital projects Increasingly in state legislatures, not at the ballot box Securing funds including operating funds at the ballot box Conclusion: Transit proponents need to get smarter about securing funding

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Lessons Learned from Finance and Funding Campaigns

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Lesson #1: Both the legislature and voters matter Sometimes the campaign is entirely in the legislature Keep New York Moving campaign (2009) Transportation Works for Kansas (2010) Other times legislation is needed prior to the ballot vote Georgia T-SPLOST Washington State enabling legislation for King County congestion reduction charge California enabling legislation for Measure R

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Lesson #2: Plans are better than projects

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Lesson #3: Understand what the public thinks

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Lesson #4: One key to victory in transit campaigns is those who will never use transit

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Lesson #5: Humor helps

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Lesson #6: The agency needs to be respectedor invisible

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Lesson #7: Service cuts and fare increases are a strong motivator...

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter... But may not be enough

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Lesson #8: Include funds for operations including buses Measure R Spending Allocation

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Lesson #9: Dont neglect transit allies

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter St. Louis Washington state/ King County Miami Lesson #10: If at first you dont succeed, try, try again

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The next great battle: Ensuring equity in funding sources

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Who will pay the proposed taxes and fees are they progressive or regressive? Who will benefit from the investments made with the transit funding? If those taxes and/or fees are not raised, who will pay the higher fares? When considering equity in funding mechanisms, the question is whether the method chosen is more regressive than other ways of paying for transit including fares. Evaluating equity in transit funding

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Unlike an income tax, which generally applies to most income, the sales tax applies only to a portion of income that is spent and exempts income that is saved. Since high earners are able to save a much larger share of their incomes than middle-income families and since the poor can rarely save at all the tax is inherently regressive. The average states consumption tax structure is equivalent to an income tax with a 7 percent rate for the poor, a 4.6 percent rate for the middle class, and a 0.9 percent rate for the wealthiest taxpayers. Sales taxes frequently used for transit are often regressive

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Gasoline taxes are not as regressive as commonly thought

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Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter Rising property values that support value capture can also cause gentrification

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The Kitty and Michael Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy conducts interdisciplinary research, in collaboration with civic leaders and scholars both within and beyond Northeastern University, to identify and implement real solutions to the critical challenges facing urban areas throughout Greater Boston, the Commonwealth, and the nation. Founded in 1999 as a think and do tank, the Dukakis Centers collaborative research and problem- solving model applies powerful data analysis, multidisciplinary research and evaluation techniques, and a policy-driven perspective to address a wide range of issues facing cities, towns, and suburbs, with a particular emphasis on the greater Boston region. The Dukakis Center works to catalyze broad- based efforts to solve urban problems, acting as both a convener and a trusted and committed partner to local, state, and national agencies and organizations. In November 2008 the Center was renamed in honor of Kitty and Michael Dukakis for the extraordinary work that both of them have done to make the City of Boston, the Commonwealth, and the nation a better place to live and work. Policy Focus Areas: Economic Development Housing Labor/Management Relations Program Evaluation State and Local Public Finance Transportation Workforce Development Northeastern University Dukakis Center for Urban & Regional Policy Dukakis Center for Urban and Regional Policy Northeastern University (617) 373-7870 www.northeastern.edu/dukakiscenter A Think and Do Tank