(Disclosure: Rose Law Group represents a coalition of property and business owners throughout Pinal County who have worked to bring new transportation infrastructure to the region.)
By Mark Cowling | Pinal Central
FLORENCE — Pinal County voters will be asked to re-approve a half-cent sales tax for roads, this time for the full amount of purchases.
The Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a resolution Monday afternoon calling for a tax to fund the Pinal Regional Transportation Authority to be included on the Nov. 8 general election ballot.
The Arizona Supreme Court ruled on a challenge to the tax earlier this year, saying it was mostly legal, but eliminating the tax on payments over $10,000 turned it into a two-tier tax, which is invalid under state law. That provision of the tax had been included to appease car dealers and homebuilders.
Voters will now be asked to approve “a straight half-cent sales tax across the board,” Deputy County Attorney Chris Keller told the supervisors.
The sales tax was narrowly approved by voters in 2018, and consumers started paying it in 2019, sending a total of $82 million to fund the road projects, even as the plan stalled before the courts for years.
