Will Kempton, former Caltrans chief under Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger who subsequently headed the Orange County Transportation Authority, now heads Transportation California which has proposed an initiative to tax vehicles to fund infrastructure.
"Earlier this year, Kempton was named executive director of Transportation California, which advocates for increased infrastructure investment," writes Ryan Holeywell.
Kempton and his group are backing a ballot initiative to shore up transportation funding in the Golden State. Last month, Transportation California filed paperwork with the state's attorney general for the "California Road Repairs Act of 2014."
This transportation 'option', as funding strategies are typically called, is different from most measures discussed here, including state gas taxes, including excise taxes and wholesale taxes, road tolling, and vehicle-miles-traveled fees. The method chosen is to restore the vehicle license fee (VLF) - a type of property tax based on the resale vale of the vehicle, to 2%. It has been .65% since his former boss, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, reduced it as he promised in the recall election of then-Gov. Gray Davis. More detail can be found on last month's post on the initiative.
An advantage of the VLF is that it is a progressive tax, unlike the regressive gas tax. A disadvantage is that it makes for a very poor 'user fee' - the tax is the same whether the vehicle is driven 100 or 10,000 miles a year.
Kempton ruled out gas taxes, calling them unpopular. Besides, the Golden State already has the highest state gas tax @53.5 cents [PDF].
Transportation California's polling confirms that an increase in the vehicle license fees would gain more traction with voters than a gas-tax hike or a vehicle-miles traveled (VMT) fee. (Kempton says a VMT fee may be a long-term solution but isn't politically viable today.)
Their initiative, while awaiting titling by the state attorney general's office, is far from a done deal, as their website indicates.
We want to make it perfectly clear to everyone receiving this notification that Transportation California and the Alliance for Jobs, along with our coalition of interested parties, has NOT made a final decision to pursue such a measure in 2014. We are simply keeping our options open.
FULL STORY: California Has a New Infrastructure Advocate
California Ballot Measure Will Propose New Fee to Fund Roads
Would you be willing to increase the annual license fee you pay on your vehicle if the funds were to go to road repair and expansion? That's the question Californians will be asked to decide if the Road Repairs Act qualifies for the Nov. 2014 ballot.
Brown vs. Brown on the Value of California's Initiative Process
That's Calif. Gov. Jerry Brown and former Calif. Assembly Speaker Willie Brown. In two unrelated L.A. Times articles, Gov. Brown credits the initiative system for making the state governable while former speaker Brown is opposed to direct democracy.
Article 34 in Action: Bay Area Suburb Uses 1950 Initiative to Block Homeless Housing
Next year, California voters will determine whether to repeal a 1950 initiative that requires local voter buy-in for government-supported low income housing, but that hasn't deterred Millbrae from using it to sue San Mateo County.
Pennsylvania Mall Conversion Bill Passes House
If passed, the bill would promote the adaptive reuse of defunct commercial buildings.
Planning for Accessibility: Proximity is More Important than Mobility
Accessibility-based planning minimizes the distance that people must travel to reach desired services and activities. Measured this way, increased density can provide more total benefits than increased speeds.
Fair Housing Cannot Take a Back Seat to ‘Build, Baby, Build’
If we overlook fair housing principles in the plan to build US housing back better, we risk ending up right back where we started.
LA Metro Board Approves New 710 Freeway Plan
The newest plan for the 710 corridor claims it will not displace any residents.
Austin’s Proposed EV Charging Rules Regulate Station Locations, Size
City planners say the new rules would ensure an efficient distribution of charging infrastructure across the city and prevent an overconcentration in residential areas.
Making California State Parks More Climate-Resilient
A recently released report offers recommendations for keeping state parks healthy and robust, including acquiring additional land for conservation and recreation.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Tufts University, Department of Urban and Environmental Policy & Planning
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
