Mecklenburg sales tax increase bill gets another big boost

MATTHEWS, N.C. — Mecklenburg County’s transit bill is getting closer to its final destination. The House Finance Committee voted Tuesday morning to give Rep. Tricia Cotham’s PAVE Act a favorable report. The bill now sits in the Rules Committee awaiting a full House vote. The House can vote on the bill as soon as Wednesday.

“With any type of big bill like this, if everyone is happy, it is not good legislation,” Rep. Tricia Cotham told the committee. “This is a bill that has been very thought out with lots of buy in.”

The bill will allow Mecklenburg County residents to vote on a referendum this November on whether to raise the sales tax by a penny. If approved, 40% of the funding will go toward rail projects, 40% to road projects and 20% to bus projects. The legislation states the first priority project will be the Red Line commuter rail to Iredell County.

The bill creates an authority to oversee the funding.

Matthews Commissioner Ken McCool spoke in opposition at the Finance Committee. Several leaders in the town of Matthews are resistant to the sales tax increase because the Silver Line light rail project no longer is slated to go to Matthews. The latest proposal calls for the line to stretch from the airport to the Bojangles Coliseum.

Commissioner McCool said he prefers a different funding split that would keep Matthews’ light rail dreams alive.

“All we’re saying is, let’s take a look at the funding model and see if we can move some of the numbers around to get Silver Line as close into Matthews as possible,” he said.

The transit bill will provide Matthews with at least $5 million a year for road improvements.

If approved by the House, the bill will then head to the Senate.

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