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January 05, 2007

I'm Not Sure How Many of Our Thousands of Swillers

...are from Bangla-cola, less mind Escambia County District 2, but...if you are...call or email this guy (our newly elected commissar) and let him have it. The new guy thinks this...

Escambia eyes fuel-tax hike
Extra 5 cents would raise $7 million for public transit

Escambia County could raise its gasoline tax by 5 cents a gallon to help fund its struggling public transit system.

It would require two public hearings and four out of five county commissioners voting for it before the increase could pass. It could not take effect before Jan. 1, 2008.

The county's current gasoline tax is 6 cents a gallon. Adding another 5 cents could be a tough sell as record-high fuel prices remain fresh in commuters' minds.


...is a good idea.
...County officials want to offset the pain at the pump by lowering property taxes by whatever amount they raise the fuel tax.

"We will not double-dip the taxpayers," County Administrator George Touart said.

...Commissioners Grover Robinson, Gene Valentino, Mike Whitehead and Marie Young said they would vote for the increase if it came with an accompanying reduction in property taxes.


Hmmm, let's see, Pi ...okay, I won't call him a PINHEAD yet since he's the new guy. We live in one of the poorest counties in Florida. This tax would go to 'save' the bus system, not expand it to the hundreds of miles of county (like Pi ...Mr. Valentino's district ) which have never (and will never) witness a bus rumbling through, but ARE full of the hardworking, minimum wage renters that the county is famous for. And carefully fosters the climate for, keeping it favorable for the endless supply of drones required by our captains of local industry. These people have to DRIVE for their $7/hr. These people have no property to get a break on. Most are probably not subscribers to the local paper (which has to be delivered by minimum wage types in CARS, too) and pretty informationally challenged. And then there're those lucky, forgotten folks who live in the upper 4/5's wasteland of the county* but WORK in the privileged lower 5th. The highlighted area (click for full size) is the sum and parcel of the ENTIRE Escambia County Area Transit service.

* You'll notice that there's not much going on in the upper reaches of the county, as well as our oft neglected West Pensacola. Mr. "Just a Nickel More" Valentino was elected to represent our district by...somebody. God knows who. (For scale, it's just about 60 miles from the Gulf to the FL/AL line and about 662 sq. miles total.) The county's population is just under 300K. 56K or so live in Pensacola proper. Amazingly enough, that corresponds exactly with the yellow bus service outline! The rest of us drive.

I'm sure the Commissioner will be all too happy to let the oil companies take the PR hit for the 5 cents that suddenly appears at the pump. Mr. Touart can take his dip, double it and stick it...anywhere but our backs. Jeez, I can't stand that guy. While I've got him on the phone, I'm telling Mr. "Just Another Nickel" that, too.

Posted by tree hugging sister at January 5, 2007 10:09 AM

Comments

Why can't the enviroweenies get it throught their heads? There needs to be a certain population density in order for public transit to be economically feasible, and few places ousdie the Northeast and parts of California have that density (in more ways than one). Public transit is so great in Japan because they're all sqeezed into that little alluvial plain like ants in a farm.

Our county is in a similar situation, but they at least attempt service outside the two big towns. But once or twice a week service is useless, and the busses are always more than half empty. I want the system scrapped, and the taxes returned to the taxpayers.

Posted by: John at January 5, 2007 10:24 AM

Oh, now, I did leave out the one lone, long bus route that traverses the wilderness to Cantonement (about a third of the way up the map).

Posted by: tree hugging sister at January 5, 2007 10:29 AM

This is a GREAT idea, if you can work out the kinks:

1 - if you give the money back to the taxpayer, how exactly does the gas hike result in a $7 million increase in revenues?

2 - since you SAY you're not increasing the taxpayer's total bill, wouldn't it be easier simply to take that $7 million from what you already have and put it into the bus lines?

3 - if this plan works as well as you say, and more people take the bus, won't they therefore be buying less gas and thus shrinking that tax as a source of revenue?

On second thought, don't try to answer any of those questions, you may bleed from the ears. Ball's in your court, Commisioner.

Posted by: Nightfly at January 5, 2007 10:48 AM

AND didn't even begin to wax poetic about an extra 5 cents when another Ivan makes gas itself an expensive, RARE commodity. Oh, we'll be loving that non-existent bus service then, let me tell you.

Posted by: tree hugging sister at January 5, 2007 10:49 AM