Metro Light Rail (file)
By Jay Taylor | inMaricopa
Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey vetoed HB2685 last week, which could jeopardize funding for improvements on the northern end of SR 347 in Maricopa County.
What might Gov. Doug Ducey’s veto of HB2685 mean for Maricopans and State Route 347? The answers depend on who you ask.
Ducey vetoed the bill last week. Had he signed it, the measure would have put a 25-year extension of Maricopa County’s current half-cent sales tax, which runs through 2025, on the ballot this November. The veto likely pushes the voters’ chance to approve the extension to the 2024 election.
But why would a bill affecting only Maricopa County be so important to residents of the city of Maricopa and Pinal County? The northern half of SR 347 lies in Maricopa County, and that’s what has some local leaders seething.
Interim Mayor Vincent Manfredi said Ducey’s veto will have no impact on Pinal County as a whole, “but does have an impact on SR 347 as we would need it to pass in Maricopa County to provide money for the extra lane on the northern part of SR 347.”
Councilmember Rich Vitiello minced no words when discussing his view of Ducey’s veto.
