Tackling taxes, transit

Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper, and a few other leading Republicans do not want to put a sales tax increase on the ballot in November. Stephenson, president of the Utah Taxpayers Association, which historically opposes all tax increases, said switching from a property tax hike to a sales tax hike for light rail "virtually assures its passage" at the ballot box, since Utahns historically despise property tax increases.

It is just wrong to take up such a complicated tax/transit issue in a special session, Stephenson said. "Special sessions are not friendly to taxpayers; we just see more mistakes all around" in them.

A July poll conducted for the Deseret Morning News and KSL-TV by Dan Jones & Associates found that 68 percent of residents along the Wasatch Front favor a sales tax hike to pay for expansion of TRAX, commuter rail and bus services. Only 28 percent of those citizens opposed the sales tax hike, Jones found.

Curtis said that poll is just one reason he likes the sales tax option. "We've never funded mass transit with property tax before. It's always been through the sales tax. I don't want to give a big property tax hike — that would take out any property tax head-room for public schools and local governments."

And that would pit public school advocates against mass transit advocates, a face-off that does not bode well for anyone, legislative leaders said.

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E-mail: bbjr@desnews.com