$18 car rental fee for KRM is baaaack (maybe)

UPDATE:  SERTA voted this morning to ask the feds for approval to begin preliminary engineering work on KRM. At the same time, they voted against enacting the $18 rental car fee to fund the commuter rail proposal  -- at least until the Federal Transit Administration OK's the application. More from the Journal Sentinel here.

Original post:

Remember the $18 car rental tax proposed to pay our share of KRM commuter rail?

It's baaaaaaack!

Hard to believe, eh?, especially since the Legislature's inaction at the end of the session just last month appeared to bury the Regional Transit Authority legislation once and for all.

The Southeastern Regional Transit Authority (SERTA) has scheduled a discussion of the "New Starts" application to the Federal Transit Administration for Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee commuter rail. Members will decide today whether to submit that application -- and if they do that, they will consider "enactment of vehicle rental fee," according to the May 17 meeting agenda. The meeting is at 8 a.m. at Mitchell Airport.

A PowerPoint presentation prepared in April by the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission -- which represents Racine, Kenosha, Milwaukee, Waukesha, Washington, Walworth and Ozaukee Counties -- assumes an initial $9 vehicle rental fee to be enacted this month, with revenues collected beginning Sept. 1, 2010; the fee would increase to $18 in March 2012, with the expanded revenue collection to begin on July 1, 2012.

Vehicle rental fee revenues are predicted to produce $10 million to $14.2 million a year, from 2017 to 2028. Commuter fare revenues during the same period are projected to raise $5 million to $6.6 million annually. The rest of the needed operating funds would come from state and federal sources.

Last June, Gov. Doyle said he wanted to veto the car rental fee proposal, but he left it intact "because the transit authority must have a local funding source to move forward with the federal application promise." Doyle had proposed a .5% sales tax, but legislators demurred. Other proposals have included a wheel tax; that, too, has gone nowhere. Last month, the Racine County Board voted to authorize a referendum in November, asking voters: " Should any new tax to support transit or rail services, such as a sales tax or local vehicle registration fee, be permitted in any part of Racine County?" That vote would be strictly advisory, and would have no bearing on SERTA's ability to impose a car rental tax (which would be mostly collected in Milwaukee County anyway.)

Citizens for Responsible Government notes, "SERTA is proceeding with applying to the federal government for the project even though they said in December it wouldn’t be considered without passage of still more tax increases by the legislature. Those taxes failed, but SERTA may raise taxes anyway."

SERTA's meeting agenda is here; the link to the New Starts presention is agenda item 7 b.

Transit advocates are mobilizingagainst County Board's non-binding referendum

An interesting sidelight to the one-man, one-vote bedrock of Democracy is surfacing this week. The County Board is on the cusp of calling for a countywide vote on regional transit ... while proponents of  transit itself are mobilizing against it.

What it all boils down to is this: The County Board, and County Executive Bill McReynolds -- who are 100% in favor of commuter rail as long as it's paid for by a tax on cars rented in Milwaukee and not by a countywide sales tax (No, no, no, the ghost of George Petak, no!!) -- want to put the matter to a referendum. A referendum many are  sure would lose, as it calls for approval of a new tax.

The County Board doesn't want a binding referendum, mind you; just an advisory one. The board still would be able to do whatever it pleases... (So, you ask, why bother with the vote at all? That's the question opponents are asking.)

The resolution, up for second reading and possible final approval at the County Board's meeting Tuesday night would authorize:

"The Placement On The November 2010 Ballot Of An Advisory Referendum Question With Regard To A Possible Additional Tax For Mass Transit Purposes."

Or so the board's agenda reads. Actually, the resolution says much more than that -- we have it all below -- but the ultimate result would be a ballot question asking Racine County voters:

"Should any new tax to support transit or rail services, such as a sales tax or local vehicle registration fee, be permitted in any part of Racine County?"

Regional transit and KRM commuter rail supporters are up in arms. They plan to march on the County Board (The image of villagers brandishing fiery torches inexplicably comes to mind.) to speak out at the board meeting Tuesday.

Mind you, a lot of important Racine and Milwaukee area residents are all in favor of commuter rail. A few weeks ago, Roger Caron, president of RAMAC, was running a radio commercial urging listeners to call Sen. John Lehman and Rep. Cory Mason for their support. (They're both Democrats; Republican Rep. Robin Vos presumably is a lost cause on this issue.) And 32 top business leaders -- from Aurora Health Care, Wheaton Franciscan, Froedtert, Marshall & Ilsley, Johnson Financial, Kranz, SC Johnson, Johnson Controls, Wispark... you get the picture -- wrote to the Legislature earlier this year, "on behalf of the  100,000 employees we represent," urging support of a "multi-modal regional transit authority including Kenosha, Racine and Milwaukee Counties" with "a dedicated funding mechanism."

And many are not. McReynolds himself, in his "State of the County" address last May, said, "Two years ago, this County Board expressed support for commuter rail." (Alas, for regional transit supporters, he didn't stop there.)  "...provided it would be funded by a car rental fee. Earlier this year, while the County Board expressed support for regional transit, it called for an elected governing body, (...or there...) vigorously opposed a sales tax, and insisted that individual communities be able to decide whether to be taxed for transit.

TransitNOW is planning to storm the battlements -- well, they hope to show up en masse at the Couty Board meeting at Ives Grove at 6:30 p.m. this Tuesday -- opposing any such referendum. So is Community for Change.

Kerry Thomas, executive director of TransitNow, calls the proposed referendum question : "clearly biased, inaccurately worded, and misleading." She notes that the proposed RTA legislation mandates a binding referendum for every municipality that wants to implement a sales tax for transit. "This was a request by the County Board, County Executive McReynolds, and Rep. Robin Vos," she says. "Should the board vote for the referendum Tuesday, their vote will take place "before the RTA legislation even has a chance to pass."

Thomas is urging members to speak during the public comment period at the beginning the board meeting, to urge the board "to let municipalities decide for themselves if and when they want to invest in transit, as the RTA legislation calls for. If there must be a referendum, urge them to re-write the referendum question to accurately describe the situation so that the results will be useful.... Let’s make sure that any referendum that is placed is useful and is based on an accurate description of the issue so that it reflects the true wishes of the people, and is not misleading or a waste of time and money."

Kelly Gallaher of Community for Change says much the same. "A non-binding referendum is a waste of the people's time... Non-binding resolutions are almost always an indication of governmental weakness and a failure in leadership. To 'poll' constituents about issues without the benefit of binding action using a flawed and hypothetical question is just stupid. I support the use of ballot resolutions that are binding and reflect real legislation; anything short of that is political theater."

Others see the potential referendum as something else entirely, as a "wedge issue," a hot-button on the ballot to energize, say, the TEA Party movement -- which has been vocal in its opposition to KRM.  (They brought in Randall O'Toole from the CATO Institute a few weeks ago;  he questioned most of transit supporters' economic forecasts.) Once at the polls, this theory goes, these people will vote "right," thus influencing the outcome of other election issues and candidates.


The complete County Board resolution states:

To the Honorable Members of the Racine County Board of Supervisors:

      WHEREAS, mass transit in Southeastern Wisconsin has been the subject of various legislative proposals since 2005, some already enacted and others still pending; and

      WHEREAS, some of these proposals would permit imposition, within Racine County, of new taxes, such as a sales tax or a local vehicle registration fee, to provide the local share of funds for mass transit, which could include both bus and KRM (Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee) commuter rail transit; and

      WHEREAS, in Resolution 2006-160, the Racine County Board of Supervisors expressed its support for a vehicle rental fee as the sole funding mechanism for commuter rail; and

      WHEREAS, in Resolution 2008-134S, the Racine County Board of Supervisors expressed its opposition to a sales tax as a funding mechanism for commuter rail; and

      WHEREAS, given the conflicting provisions of legislative proposals for funding mass transit in Southeastern Wisconsin, and the expectation that more proposals will be introduced, members of the public have expressed a desire that their views on this matter be heard; and

      WHEREAS, the Racine County Board of Supervisors desires to hear the views of the public on this important matter; and

      WHEREAS, subsection 59.52 (25) of the Wisconsin Statutes permits the County Board of Supervisors to conduct a countywide referendum for advisory purposes; and

      WHEREAS, the following advisory referendum question provides a way for the public to express its views on how the local share of mass transit in Racine County should be funded:

    Should any new tax to support transit or rail services, such as a sales tax or local vehicle registration fee, be permitted in any part of Racine County?

      NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Racine County Board of Supervisors will place on the November 2010 ballot the following as an advisory referendum question:

    Should any new tax to support transit or rail services, such as a sales tax or local vehicle registration fee, be permitted in any part of Racine County?

      BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be sent to the Governor, to Racine County’s state legislative delegation, and to the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority (SERTA).

Assembly committee passes RTA for Racine, southeastern Wisconsin

An Assembly committee just passed a regional transit authority for southeastern Wisconsin. The proposal passed on a 8-2 vote and now heads to the Joint Committee on Finance for a public hearing and then to the full Assembly for approval. If it passes, the proposal will move to the Senate, where just a few weeks ago its prospects were dim.

The state needs to pass an RTA for southeastern Wisconsin in order to extend commuter rail from Kenosha to Milwaukee. The federal government could award up to $250 million to create the KRM rail line, but the application will require a strong public transit component to get approved.

Here's the J-S story on the vote. And, the Daily Reporter interviews Robin Vos, who isn't happy.

More as reports come in ...

Transit Now, the organization lobbying for KRM and the RTA, is happy about the committee vote, which included support from one Republican.

Here's one blogger's preview story of the Assembly committee's vote.

Little hope for KRM, regional transit this year, Lehman says; Racine Senator says 'votes aren't there' for train, bus proposal

A proposal to to consolidate southeastern Wisconsin's bus systems and to build a commuter rail train from Kenosha to Milwaukee are all but dead this year, according to Sen. John Lehman.

"It doesn't look like it's going to happen," Lehman said. "It's hard for people to accept. It's hard for me to accept."

In a long interview, Sen. John Lehman rejected a RacinePost story suggesting he was "terrified" to vote on legislation to create a regional transit authority in Milwaukee, Racine and Kenosha counties. Lehman is up for re-election in November. A Democratic insider said the RTA was dead because Senate leaders didn't want Lehman to have to either vote for a sales tax or vote against a plan needed to extend commuter rail to Racine.

"I'm almost 65," Lehman said. "I'm not terrified of anything any more."

Lehman said Senate Majority Leader Russ Decker may not allow a vote on the proposal in hopes of protecting Democrats who are up for re-election in November. It's a sensitive issue for Senate Democrats because seven out of the party's 18-member majority are affected by the RTA legislation, including two of the party's four most vulnerable members. Lehman and Sen. Jim Sullivan, D-Wauwatosa, both serve districts that are evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats.

Further, even if it did come up for a vote in the Senate this spring, it probably wouldn't pass.

"The real story is the votes aren't there," Lehman said.

Lehman has opposed any plan for Racine County that involved a sales tax to pay for regional transit. That's put him at odds with Gov. Jim Doyle, who would like to see a three-county sales tax to pay for a consolidated bus system that would connect Milwaukee, Racine and Kenosha counties. It would also strengthen the region's application for $250 million in federal money to extend commuter rail from Kenosha to Milwaukee. A unified transit system, or RTA, is needed to ensure people can use buses and the commuter train to travel throughout the region.

Instead of a sales tax, Lehman has looked at alternative taxes such as a wheel, hotel room or property tax to pay for the regional transit system. (Incidentally, shifting Racine's bus system to an RTA would remove the $9 million operation from the city's budget.) He also supported a public referendum on an RTA to determine if voters want to spend money on improving public transit.

But Lehman's plans have all fallen short. Republicans won't go along with his belief that regional transit is needed to connect people to jobs, retain major companies and to attract new companies to southeastern Wisconsin. They say commuter rail and bus systems are too expensive and redundant, given most people have cars.

Democrats oppose Lehman's ideas because they either want a regional sales tax (Doyle) or they're involved in some sort of confusing inter-Milwaukee squabble that made compromise difficult.

"I've busted my butt day and night on this trying to find a way to make this work," Lehman said.

He said he felt a deal was in place in the 2007 state budget, but Gov. Jim Doyle vetoed the plan as unworkable. The governor's veto was a shock, Lehman said.

"I thought we had it," Lehman said of a 2007 plan.

But a Democratic insider said it was Lehman who eliminated a workable RTA proposal from the 2007 state budget. Doyle had proposed a regional sales tax that would have given the RTA a consistent, dedicated funding source needed to land the federal money to build KRM and to combine the region's bus systems. Lehman objected to the plan because he was opposed to a sales tax for Racine County.

The attempted compromise was enough to win over the Senate and Assembly, but Doyle determined it wouldn't land the federal money. He vetoed the proposal with the intention of going back for his original plan, which was the three-county sales tax. But the economy took a downturn, Democrats' poll numbers are down and Doyle announced he wasn't running for re-election. All contributed to the RTA's demise, Lehman said.

Locally, voters are deeply divided on the issue, Lehman said. While his office received 498 contacts from people in favor of KRM and a RTA, local government officials are staunchly opposed.

"The Sturtevant board screamed at us over RTA," Lehman said, adding Mount Pleasant and Caledonia officials are also opposed. (See update below.)

"There's not many people in the middle on this," he added.

The Racine City Council and mayor are generally in favor, Lehman said, but when push comes to shove they're skittish about moving forward.

"I can't get the mayor and the Common Council to come out strong for this," Lehman said. "When you start pushing them, no one wants to talk anymore."

The irony, Lehman said, is even though he's fought a sales tax increase in Racine County for several years, he'll still get hit during the campaign for supporting a sales tax increase ... in Milwaukee County. Lehman has voted in favor of a plan that would increase Milwaukee County's sales tax 0.5 percent, but would exclude Racine and Kenosha counties.

That alone shows he' not afraid to vote for commuter rail and KRM, Lehman said.

"I've voted for this stuff repeatedly," Lehman said. "If they want to attack me, they'll attack me."

Update: Chris Wright, Sturtevant Village Trustee, sent us the following response:

I would like to address the accusation of Sen. Lehman's, that the Sturtevant Village Board screamed at him. At best this is an exaggeration. If Sen. Lehman's definition of screaming is a board of seven elected officials unanimously voicing their opposition to the RTA and the KRM, as screaming I'm confused. The discussion was very civil, but we made our stance clear. This would not benefit Sturtevant. It would take virtually the same amount of time for a Sturtevant resident to drive to the proposed KRM station and then take the train ride, as it does to drive to downtown Milwaukee or the Kenosha Metra Station. We also did not see how taxing only half of Racine County was fair to the people of Sturtevant. Lastly we hold to the belief that the last thing Southeast Wisconsin needs is another unelected body with taxing authority.

I will give Sen. Lehman credit for actually listening to our concerns, as opposed to Rep. Mason who was also in attendance. Rep. Mason continues to ignore and thumb his nose at local leadership.

Democratic leaders, trying to protect Lehman, are killing commuter rail, insider says

Democrats are putting on a good show with efforts to pass a regional transit system in southeastern Wisconsin that would combine bus systems and allow KRM commuter rail to move forward.

But it's an open secret in the Legislature that Democratic leadership, particularly in the Senate, will not allow a transit proposal reach the floor for a vote, according to a Democrat insider with knowledge of the negotiations.

The RTA and KRM are DOA.

Democratic leaders have no interest in pushing any of the proposals circulating around the Capitol that would combine Racine, Kenosha and Milwaukee counties into a regional transit authority paid for with some sort of combination of taxes, transportation aids and local government spending.

Majority Leader Russ Decker and other top Democrats are afraid pushing the proposal will force Democratic legislators to either vote for a tax increase or vote against KRM commuter rail. Sen. John Lehman, D-Racine, is of particular concern because he's up for re-election this November against Republican Van Wanggaard.

"Lehman is terrified of voting for any sort of tax increase," according to the Democratic insider. "Call it the Petak effect."

Former state Sen. George Petak, R-Racine, switched his vote in the middle of the night in favor of a tax increase on Racine County to pay for the new Miller Park. Local residents threw him out of office and replaced him with Democrat Kim Plache.

Lehman is afraid voters will do the same to him. He's so skittish on the possibility he's even afraid to vote for fellow Racine Democrat Cory Mason's plan that would allow Racine County to join an RTA without passing a tax increase. The plan does call for a sales tax increase in Milwaukee, and Lehman is fearful he'll be linked to the tax increase.

Decker, who's trying to hold on to control of the State Senate through the November election, will not allow any transit legislation come up for a vote this spring, according to the Democratic insider.

"All of this is being done so Lehman doesn't have to vote on KRM," the insider said. "They want it to look like he supports it, but never has to vote on it."

The insider provided detailed specifics on how Democrat leaders in the Senate intend to kill the legislation. The plan was to have Sen. Jim Holperin, chairman of the Senate's Committee on Transportation, Tourism, Forestry, and Natural Resources, basically pass the bill (SB205) to Sen. Jeff Plale, chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Utilities, Energy, and Rail, who would sit on it and refuse to allow it to come up for a vote.

"Once it gets to Plale it's in a blackhole," the insider said.

Holperin apparently complicated things by refusing to release the bill, the insider said. Regardless, Decker will never allow the full Senate to vote on an RTA for southeastern Wisconsin.

The Democratic insider added it may not matter. Milwaukee, Racine and Kenosha need a "consistent dedicated source" of income to receive $250 million in federal money to build the KRM commuter rail system. That basically means they need to agree to a regional sales tax, which isn't going to happen.

Mason and Milwaukee Rep. Tamara Grigsby released a plan that would avoid a sales, wheel or room tax for Racine County, but that plan won't pass muster with the federal government, the insider said. Gov. Jim Doyle's plan is the best option, they said, but Democrats' efforts to protect Lehman will kill the proposal.

"The whole process is frustrating since the votes for a three-county RTA with a consistant funding source would pass is Lehman would stop playing politics and do the right thing," the insider said. "It's an easy vote for him, but he's trying to have it both ways."

In summary: the RTA is dead, and KRM commuter rail is dead along with it.

Mason proposal backs KRM without need for local tax increase

The state Legislature is continuing its mystifying debate over the so-called "regional transit authorities" that would be used to pay for buses and commuter rail in southeastern Wisconsin.

Maybe this falls on the J-S reporter, but seriously, I dare anyone to read this article and explain what's going on with the RTAs. Racine State Rep. Cory Mason is somehow involved in this, but good luck trying to decipher what he's proposing along with Rep. Tamara Grisby.

Honestly, as an outsider, it seems Democrats are doing their best to muddy the waters and avoid any sort of meaningful action on an issue that's unpopular with the public. After all, most people who vote own cars and wouldn't think of using public transportation.

I'm working on a story about the stunning mismanagement of this entire process, including inept public relations on explaining how and why public transportation is important to Racine and other communities throughout southeastern Wisconsin. More on this in the next few days ...

Update: Here's a much better story by Sean Ryan of The Daily Reporter that explains Mason's proposal. Essentially, Mason is trying to avoid tax increases by dedicating local transportation aids to transit systems in Racine and Kenosha. In exchange, Racine and Kenosha need to maintain their spending on transit systems at 2010 plus an annual inflation increase.

I just talked with Mason about his proposal, which is much simpler than the J-S story suggests. Mason and Grisby came up with the plan to try and break gridlock around a regional transit authority for southeastern Wisconsin. The RTA is important because the federal government won't release roughly $250 million for the KRM commuter rail system unless there's regional cooperation on transit.

Mason's plan allows Racine and Kenosha to join the RTA, formally called the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority, or SERTA, without passing a tax increase. That's important because proposals for wheel, sales and hotel taxes are politically difficult.

Under Mason's proposal, Racine would transfer its Belle Urban System to SERTA, which would run the buses. Kenosha would do the same with its transit system. Both cities would continue to pay for the systems, plus a cost-of-living increase, and the state would allocate $2.5 million for Racine and $2.5 million for Kenosha out of the local transportation aids typically used to rebuild local roads.

Why spend money on buses instead of roads? Because it would convince the federal government to approve the $250 million for commuter rail, Mason said.

The plan, like everything with KRM, local transit and RTAs, has obstacles. One big one is Gov. Jim Doyle opposes Mason's plan. The governor favors his own proposal, which would require Racine and Kenosha to approve some sort of tax increase.

Mason said he was "disappointed" with the governor's response because Doyle's plan doesn't have enough votes to pass the Assembly. Mason said his plan has more votes than Doyle's plan, but he stopped short of saying he had enough votes to pass the proposal.

What does all this mean for KRM? It still seems like a long shot, but at least there's a proposal out there that would allow Sen. John Lehman to support commuter rail without having to support a tax increase. That's important because Lehman, D-Racine, is up for re-election this year, and he may have a tough race against Republican challenger Van Wanggaard.

Update 2: Mayor John Dickert is backing Mason's proposal.

“It takes the taxpayers of Racine out of the equation,” Dickert said in a statement from his office.

Dickert's statement added the bill requires the Department of Transportation to move from singling out roads to a more Regional Transit focus, which he feels is important because expanding highways does not necessarily help cities.

Forum: To build commuter rail, officials first have to fix bus systems

Standing room only at Wednesday's night KRM forum.

A forum was held in Racine Wednesday night on KRM as a "game-changer." Here's a few notes from the forum ...

* It was a good-sized turnout. About 110 people attended the forum, which was held in the DeKoven Center's Great Hall. It was a standing-room-only crowd full of local business, government and community leaders.

A panel assembled at Wednesday night's KRM forum.

* As is the trend in recent months, speakers focused on KRM as part of a wider "transit" issue that includes southeastern Wisconsin's eight bus systems. There's no dedicated funding source (ie. a sales tax) to pay for buses in the Milwaukee region, which is unusual. Nineteen of 22 U.S. cities considered peers of Milwaukee have some sort of tax or revenue source to pay for buses. The lack of dedicated funding in southeastern Wisconsin is creating a crisis in funding that's resulted in fare increases and service cuts, according to Ken Yunker, head of the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission.

* The reality is KRM won't move forward until the region figures out a way to pay for buses. Mayor John Dickert continued his stance that buses should be handled on a regional basis. This would allow buses to connect Racine to Union Grove, Kenosha and Milwaukee, while also linking Burlington to Milwaukee and Kenosha. Now, the systems are too scattered to effectively move people from one city to another, which hurts efforts to create a regional economy between Milwaukee and Chicago.

A KRM supporter dresses the part.

* There's still no talk about how buses will be paid for. The Legislature and governor created the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority, which can levy an $18 car rental tax to pay for commuter rail. But Milwaukee and Milwaukee County officials are making sure that won't happen until buses dealt with. In Milwaukee that could be a sales tax, but a sales tax in Racine or Racine County is unlikely.

* That leaves open speculation on how the Racine area will pay for transit. No one is talking specifics, but get ready for some discussion about a "wheel tax," which is allowed under state law. A wheel tax charges vehicle owners a fee on top of the state's annual registration fee. All proceeds from a wheel tax must be used for transportation-related costs.

* A sales tax was, briefly, mentioned. But any sales would apparently require a referendum.

* Jim Eastman, a long-time advocate for commuter rail in Racine, emceed the forum. To cheers from the crowd, he vowed not to retire from his job until he can take commuter rail from Racine to Milwaukee or Chicago.

* A couple of officials pointed out that even if estimates about the potential impact of KRM are way off, the numbers are still staggering. KRM-backers claim the train could, in the long run, create 71,000 jobs and $2 billion in development along the rail line. Even those numbers are cut in half, and half again, they're still major economic development for southeastern Wisconsin and Racine.

* RAMAC's Roger Caron, RCEDC's Gordie Kacala, state Sen. John Lehman and Jody Karls were recognized for their work in support of KRM.

* The title of the forum, "Tapping into Transit as a 'Game-Changer' was inspired by an article published on RacinePost.com.

Part of the crowd at the forum.

City considering moratorium on development around potential commuter rail station

The city is shutting down development around its potential commuter rail train station until the state makes a final decision on KRM.

That was bad news Wednesday evening for Racine-based developer Brent Oglesby, who was hoping to build a residential and commercial development across from Racine's possible KRM station. He appeared before the city's Redevelopment Authority to request an option to buy RDA-owned on State Street. The response he heard from the RDA: We're not selling.

The authority, which is the legal owner of the land Oglesby was seeking, voted 4-2 against giving him the option he needed to pursue his development. The RDA then voted 4-2 to "receive and file" Oglesby's proposal, which essentially means it's dead.

Pete Karas and Scott Terry voted in support of Oglesby. John Crimmings, Jim Spangenberg, David Lange and Robert Ledvina voted against.

John Crimmings, chairman of the RDA, said the authority literally wasn't selling the land. It had no broker for the property, did not issue a request for proposal and had done no research in recent years on the land's value. Instead, the RDA planned to hold the property until KRM is sorted out, one way or another, on the state level.

Crimmings and others intimated they would also seek a 12-month moratorium on development around State Street's Racine Transit Center, which is the potential home for a commuter rail stop. It was actually motioned to vote on the moratorium Wednesday night, but Karas noted the idea wasn't on the meeting agenda. The RDA will likely take up the issue in November.

The moratorium was needed to prevent a flood of developers (like Oglesby) from trying to buy up land around the commuter rail station, Crimmings said.

Karas responded by asking if the city was really concerned a flood of developers would descend on Racine. The comment drew a laugh from the audience, but gained no traction for Oglesby's project.

The RDA's vote is the end of the road, at least for now, of Oglesby's $6.6 million project, which included a statue honoring Corinne Owens, Racine's legendary civil rights activist. While Oglesby's project is done, for now, Mayor John Dickert announced this week no matter what is built on State Street it will include a section honoring Owens.

KRM dominates YPR forum with Mayor Dickert

KRM commuter rail was the lead topic Tuesday during Mayor John Dickert's first meeting with the Young Professionals of Racine.

Dickert met with 25 YPR members at the Radisson hotel. Here's some notes on the forum:

* No surprise, Dickert came out strong in support of commuter rail and regional bus transit. He said he had no problem with government supporting trains and buses because it's government that pays for roads. The state is spending $1 billion adding another lane to I-94, and Racine won't get much benefit from it. Buses and KRM will cost less than that, and benefit Racine more.

* But YPR member Chris Terry said he didn't believe transit alone would solve Racine's problems. The city needs to become more aggressive in attracting businesses with tax benefits and other incentives, he said.

* One YPR member said Racine needed KRM to connect to its neighbors. "We're getting cut off from the rest of the world," she said. "We're going to be a ghost town."

* Talk about KRM, high-speed rail and buses took up easily more than half of the forum.

* Dickert said he's working to create a 10-year parks plan for the city. Park land along the Root River, which Dickert called on the "longest continuous parks" in the country, will be a focus of the plan.

* The city is re-writing its housing ordinances to discourage bad landlords and bad tenants tenants, Dickert said. He also wants the city involved in remodeling more homes. Right now, Dickert said, the city spends $1 million remodeling 3-4 homes a year. He wants to renovate 30-40 homes a year, without spending much more money.

Krystyna Sarrazin, executive director of YPR, introduces Mayor John Dickert Tuesday.

* Dickert said his No. 1 priority is creating jobs. He pointed out there's about 10,000 adults out of work in the city right now.

* The city is vetting every developer interested in Racine, Dickert said. Over the last five year, he said, the city took in any developer and wound up with too much low-income housing. He's trying to even out types of developments that are coming into Racine.

* Dickert said he doesn't hold grudges. He shared a story about a disagreement with an alderman over how City Administrator Tom Friedel was hired. The alderman, who opposed aspects of Friedel's hiring, assumed he was on Dickert's bad side. Dickert said he assured the alderman he wasn't. "I'm OK with disagreement," Dickert said.

* Speaking cryptically, Dickert told the YPR members there's a lot going on. "More than you know," he said.

The crowd at YPR's forum with Mayor Dickert.

Transit Summit spells out need for regional cooperation

A "Transit Summit" was held in Milwaukee last week to lay out the need for cooperation on bus and train service throughout southeastern Wisconsin.

Kerry Thomas, executive director of Transit NOW, the group pushing for KRM from Kenosha to Milwaukee, attended the pro-transit summit and wrote a summary of the gathering, which is printed below.

Here are a few key points:

* Scott Bernstein, a national expert on transit and regional economies, said southeastern Wisconsin is competing with 400 other regions for federal money to aid economic development. The money is needed because the Milwaukee region, which includes Racine, now ranks 336th out of 392 regions as a place to live and do business. Declining transit is a major region for the decline, Bernstein said.

* Jeff Van Koningsveld, president of the International Brotherhood of Electricians Local 430 in Racine, said simply that building KRM would create needed jobs in the region.

* Deborah Blanks, CEO of the Milwaukee-based Social Development Commission, summed up the need for transit. “If you want thousands of people in the inner city to work and contribute to the economy they need better transit. People are desperate for better transportation. The fiscal reality is all of the dollars that we are losing. We can’t attract businesses and grow jobs, people can’t get to the jobs and keep the jobs and contribute to our community.”

Here's Thomas's full write-up:

(Anticipating complaints, we're running this because we're pro-transit. Not radically, or irresponsibly so (we pay taxes, too), but Racine needs an injection of outside money to spur development. KRM is one big, multi-million dollar example. Another is effective bus service to I-94 once Caledonia and Mount Pleasant get their business parks going. Mostly, though, we're pro-Racine, and investing in transit helps the city.)

Southeastern Wisconsin must get its regional mass transit act together now or risk losing out in the competitive scramble for federal economic recovery infrastructure dollars while continuing to slide farther behind other regions ranked by economic development indicators for attracting jobs, talent, and outside investment.

That was the sobering message delivered at the 8th Annual Community Development Summit in Milwaukee recently by a national expert, guest panelists and other speakers including Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett and Michael Morgan, Governor Jim Doyle’s secretary of administration.

"Four hundred regions are vying for money. It’s time to start acting like a region because you can’t afford not to," said Scott Bernstein, president of the Chicago-based Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT), the event’s keynote speaker. In all, a crowd of 200 elected officials, business executives, and others attended the summit at the Italian American Community Center in Milwaukee last week.

Bernstein said a viable regional transit network is of utmost importance for growing jobs, reducing cost of living and foreclosure risk, and promoting a thriving regional economy. (His slide show presentation is available here. A series of maps linking housing and transportation expenses illustrates our shrinking housing affordability and is available at http://htaindex.cnt.org.) Detailed CNT research shows that between 1999 and 2007 in SE Wisconsin income gains were wiped out by the increases in fuel and transportation costs.

Bernstein explained that the cost of transportation must be included with the cost of housing because housing location drives transportation costs, which have climbed to be equal with housing costs region-wide. For Wisconsin, the lack of affordable transportation choices has added to foreclosure pressures and created a leaky economy, bleeding billions of dollars from the economy annually.

Greater Milwaukee Committee President Julia Taylor said improving the regional transportation network is a need “we can’t afford to ignore” any longer. She urged the public to insist their elected officials join “a call to action” to improve the region’s standing.

Bernstein reemphasized the reality that an integrated Regional Transit Authority is needed to coordinate systems across municipal boundaries to support local economies and validate the region’s federal eligibility. Areas that are successful in gaining federal investments are well organized regionally and are viewed as a much more solid investment not only in the federal review process but to investors and the private sector as well.

Barrett and Morgan both voiced similar views along with strong support for improved transit and a Regional Transit Authority. They said a regional approach is essential to creating and executing a broader transportation network with sufficient service and funding. Morgan stated, "A strong SE Wisconsin strengthens the whole state. Transit is high on the Governor’s list to get done."

Bernstein further cited a range of research data that identified poor and declining regional transit service as a key contributor to the region’s low status when compared to other places to live and do business. He said Moody's Investors Service, among the world’s most respected and widely utilized sources for credit ratings, research and risk analysis, ranks the region 336th on a list of 392 areas. Businesses and individuals consider public transportation and access to quality of life amenities highly desirable factors in determining where they will locate. The lack of good modern transit hurts our ability to attract businesses, jobs, and talent.

Bernstein, apologized for the “gloom-and-doom” scenario, but emphasized it’s not too late to take action. He then joined a seven-member reaction panel, which, despite differing views on transportation and economic development issues, unanimously agreed that the region must move quickly and decisively to:

* Form a permanent integrated Regional Transit Authority;
* Establish a dedicated transit funding source for bus systems.

"We can argue [our options], but you can’t argue the need to increase public Transit," said Edward Zore, chairman and CEO of Northwestern Mutual. The company is one of the largest employers in the area with 5,000 workers at its downtown Milwaukee office complex and Franklin campus.

Zore said 11 percent of his workers rely on public transit and complained that the company must run its own employee shuttle service between its two sites because Milwaukee County Transit System service and other options are inadequate or inefficient. Bridging the transportation gap with company money adds to the cost of doing business in the area. As a business already in the area, Northwestern came up with a solution to what another business looking to locate here would see as a potential deal breaker.

Another panelist with business locations just outside Milwaukee County said he could add and train unskilled workers who can’t afford a car, but the options simply don’t exist for them to get to the jobs. “Unless you have a car, you can’t get there from here,” said Eric Isbister, CEO of General MetalWorks Corp, a 65-employee metal fabrication company with plants in Slinger and Mequon. He said the situation is especially frustrating in Mequon where his facility is just north of County Line Road.

Jeff Van Koningsveld, president of the International Brotherhood of Electricians Local 430 in Racine, added that “for Racine job growth has become a critically urgent need. Transit investments create jobs.” He added that the startup of KRM would create 4,000 jobs, and the development along the corridor would create 17,500 that would not be there at all without the investment.

“Everyone will benefit through tourism and sales as or many businesses and cultural destinations open up to nearly 2 million people that live near transit stations in the Milwaukee-Chicago corridor. The time is now to make the RTA real so we can get to work creating jobs and building cleaner more prosperous future.”

Deborah Blanks, CEO of the Milwaukee-based Social Development Commission responded to a question about the fiscal reality of government budgets saying, “If you want thousands of people in the inner city to work and contribute to the economy they need better transit. People are desperate for better transportation. The fiscal reality is all of the dollars that we are losing. We can’t attract businesses and grow jobs, people can’t get to the jobs and keep the jobs and contribute to our community.”

Other panelists were Wallace White, president of the African American Chamber of Commerce; and Karl Ostby, chairman of the temporary Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Transit Authority.

Current efforts to shore up transit and commuter options include gaining a dedicated funding source for existing bus systems, and moving forward with the Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee commuter rail line or KRM. The need for dedicated funding source for transit is important throughout the region, and especially in Milwaukee County where increased fares and route reductions have hit the community hard. Additional service cuts are anticipated in 2010 with more cuts expected in subsequent years under current funding trends.

Taylor emphasized the immediate need to establish dedicated transit funding and a regional authority. “We are one of only two areas where transit is funded by the property tax. The other is Indianapolis.” Taylor noted that there are too many demands on the property tax and it does not grow with the economy resulting in inadequate and unstable funding for maintaining and expanding fundamental transit programs.

Analysis: KRM is the 'game-changer' Racine needs

A bi-level, diesel-multiple-unit car that would run on the KRM commuter rail line.

A RacinePost reader sent in this email Monday:

There was a shooting on the 1100 block of Romayne Ave. on Sat. night @ about midnight. 7 shots fired from a small caliber handgun into the windshield of an SUV. The perpetrator got out of a car and walked into the front yard of 1102 Romayne and fired the shots. No one was hurt. This whole neighborhood north of Gould to 3 mile and between Douglas and Main is getting hit big time by more serious crime. Racine is going to lose a lot of taxpayers and see another neighborhood go down in 10 years or so if we don't do something NOW!

I think we are moving, since this happened near us. You lose a family of 5 with 2 professionals and 3 kids in RUSD plus many others like us.

This email sums up the difficulties facing the city. How does Racine remain a viable city over the next 10 or 20 years with people worried about the future of their neighborhoods?

Problems will be exacerbated this fall when city officials consider the 2010 budget. State shared revenue is plummeting, local tax revenues are, at best, flat and likely down, and the need for police services, as well as job-training and social service programs, is on the rise. The city needs a game-changer.

By "game-changer" I mean something that radically alters direction. In a familiar sports context, it's like needing a yard for a first down and instead going for the 50-yard touchdown pass. Is there risk? Of course. But there are time when playing conservative doesn't work. You need a radical shift in thinking and action.

I can think of two game-changers that would have an immediate impact on Racine. Both are controversial, but could have real impact on the community.

The first is some sort of decriminalization of drugs. Arresting, jailing and prosecuting local residents for marijuana possession is expensive, time-consuming and ineffective. Does anyone doubt they could buy pot in Racine if they wanted to? Our police officers have better things to do (like preventing violent crime), and our taxpayers have better things to pay for, (like preventing violent crime) than busting people for small amounts of marijuana.

Setting that aside (for now), the second game-changer is the KRM commuter rail. I attended SEWRPC's listening session Monday night on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement on extending commuter rail from Kenosha to Milwaukee. It was a procedural step en route to applying for the federal money needed to make KRM a reality. No new information was presented; it was simply an opportunity for the public to submit comments on the train service.

But the hearing did provide perspective on why the train is being considered. Walking through a series of signs set up on easels through Gateway's hallways, one sign display jumped out. Here it is:

Existing Land Use around the proposed KRM station in Racine
(Click to Enlarge)

Future Land Use around the proposed KRM station in Racine
(Click to Enlarge)

The two maps date back to 2006. They were created by a consultant and the future map is only a projection of what could happen if the station is built. But the transformation makes sense, particularly along the Root River.

The current use along the river is largely industrial and storage with a mix of single-family and multi-family homes in the surrounding neighborhood. The projected future use is open green space and residential, with some commerce mixed in, surrounded by single-family homes. No doubt it's a rosy future for an area know for high crime rates. But the KRM station has the potential to be a game-changer.

The city right now is competition with its neighboring communities (Mount Pleasant, Caledonia, Oak Creek, Franklin, Somers, Kenosha, etc.) for residents. In many ways, the city doesn't have a lot to offer. It's property tax rate is high, it's crime rate is above surrounding areas, there's not a lot of jobs, the schools aren't great, driving to the Interstate is a pain ... all the problems we all know are facing the community.

Years ago the state considered extending Highway 794 along the lakefront into Racine. At the time the community fought the idea because it would divide the city and significantly change the urban landscape. Unfortunately, we're paying for that decision now because of Racine's isolation from Milwaukee and Chicago. Kenosha is growing because of its ties to northern Illinois and cities like Oak Creek and Franklin are growing because of their connection to Milwaukee. Racine sits on an island in the middle.

KRM is the city's new opportunity to plug into the neighboring urban areas. The beauty of the project is the federal government would cover a big chunk of the start up cost - more than $100 million. That's a direct investment into Racine and southeastern Wisconsin's infrastructure, one the community would be foolish to pass up.

I understand the counter argument. The ridership numbers may be optimistic/unrealistic, a rental car tax seems like a questionable way to pay for the trains and more money will probably be needed to run the trains. Racine certainly doesn't need higher taxes, and it's bordering on absurd to ask Burlington and Waterford residents to pay for a train they'll never ride.

That all makes sense. But what's lost in the argument is the need for radical change. City and state officials need to do something for Racine, and they've needed to do it for a long time. The city suffers from chronic unemployment, poverty and the resulting violent crime, and has done so for decades. (Some say the crime rate is a matter of exaggerated perception - an argument I'm sympathetic to. But I'm also sympathetic to stories like the one above. If there was a violent shooting on our block, I'd move, too.)

People need reasons to move to Racine and reasons to stay in Racine. The lake, affordable homes and a nice Downtown are good examples. But they're not enough if people are unemployed or fearful for their family's lives.

The problems described in the opening email stem from the high-crime near the KRM station. The property values in the area are depressed, the home-ownership rates are low, there are few jobs and a limited number of viable commercial businesses. The area needs massive stimulus, and right now, the only one on the table is the new KRM station.

There's a good underlying question here as to whether the station will lead to new development and an invigorated neighborhood. It worked in Kenosha and, I'm told, Highland Park, Ill. But Racine would require a substantial transformation that's difficult to envision. Still, what's the worst that happens? The train service starts, no one rides it, expenses skyrocket and the RTA turns to Racine and other communities to pickup the tab. If it's outlandish, the city will say no. It's largely federal money - money collected from our taxes that will be spent elsewhere, if not here - and fees on rental cars that's at stake.

Here's the key: What's the best outcome for Racine? KRM is an opportunity for the city to acquire a massive investment in an ailing neighborhood in desperate need of change. The region would do well to support that investment as a way to invigorate eastern Racine County's economic center and bring a new resource to a community competing for jobs and people.

Of course, there's always the alternative of decriminalizing drugs and hoping that brings people to town. But when it comes to game-changers, KRM is the best option.

Dickert: Sales tax increase will lower property taxes, improve transit

Mayor John Dickert makes the case for a sales tax increase.

Mayor John Dickert is saying publicly he supports increasing the local sales tax.

Political suicide? Maybe not.

Dickert said he backs Gov. Jim Doyle's plan to use a sales tax to pay for regional transit, including buses and commuter rail, because it could save property owners money. Here's the rationale:

1. Money collected from a sales tax could pay for city buses, offsetting the city's $1.5 million contribution to the Belle Urban System. (The $1.5 million number comes from City Administrator Tom Friedel, who pulled it from the 2009 city budget.)

2. Eliminating $1.5 million from the city budget would reduce the property tax about 24 cents per $1,000 - or roughly $24 on a $100,000 home. (The 24-cent number comes from the city's finance department.)

3. Of course, the property tax relief would come at the expense of a sales tax increase. But you'd have to spend $4,800 on taxable items to reach $240 in increased taxes. In other words, simply pulling the buses out of the city budget would save property owners money.

4. A sales tax for the RTA would generate enough money to improve regional transit - a change from the annual cuts to local bus service. Dickert said he wants to see Racine buses going to Kenosha, Caledonia, Union Grove and South Milwaukee. On the west end of the county, he'd like to see Milwaukee buses connecting Burlington. "We need a true regional system," Dickert said. "We need to stop talking about as borders we can't cross."

5. A sales tax is spread over a wider base than property taxes, which are paid by a select group of area residents. Everyone buys things subject to sales tax.

All that said, Dickert acknowledged it could be a difficult sell throughout the county. Democrats Cory Mason and John Lehman have both come out against a sales tax, and KRM commuter rail backers are still leaning on a rental car tax to pay for the train service through Racine County.

But Dickert said a sales tax would provide the framework to create a transit system that would attract businesses to southeastern Wisconsin and connect workers in Racine to jobs throughout the area.

"That's my push," he said, adding he'd work with Lehman, Mason, County Executive Bill McReynolds, and others to pursue the sales tax. "Our biggest failure will be if the train and regional transit system are not put into effect. We will set ourselves back if we don't do something."

Where's the money? Doyle's RTA plan ignores Racine's big question

Gov. Jim Doyle's latest attempt to craft a regional transit authority for southeastern Wisconsin was released today.

Frankly, at this point, it doesn't make much sense. Doyle wants a unified RTA for Racine, Kenosha and Milwaukee counties, but he'll start with something called a "sub-RTA" and try to induce Racine and Kenosha to join with some sort of matching funds. (Milwaukee will pay for its RTA with a 0.5 percent sales tax, a proposal Democrats say is off the table for Racine.)

But there's a couple of problems with Doyle's plan. First, Milwaukee County gets what it wanted all along - a sales tax to pay for its ailing bus system. What more do they need? County Board Chairman Lee Holloway said as much in the J-S.

That was a key point for Milwaukee County Board Chairman Lee Holloway, who has said bus transit faces dire funding needs that take priority over commuter rail.

In other words, Milwaukee County doesn't need Racine and could really care less if KRM commuter rail is built.

Here's another problem: How will Racine pay for its "sub-RTA"? Presumably the money would go toward paying for the Belle Urban System, which could reduce property taxes in the city. But where would the money come from? A wheel tax? (That idea has sat out there for awhile - and would have to come from Racine Mayor John Dickert). A rental car tax? (And how many cars are rented in Racine?) Some other mysterious source of money? (If so, it'll have to pass a referendum, according to Doyle's guidelines.)

The state's carrot here appears to be a deal to provide matching funds for Racine and Kenosha if they create sub-RTAs. That may work something like this: Racine creates a wheel tax and collects $X millions per year. The state agrees to match $X million dollar-for-dollar. In that scenario, Racine doubles its money for property tax relief by taking buses off the tax roll - and using state money to pay for half. Not a bad deal ... but where would the state money come from?

Doyle suggested a rental car tax - or the state's transportation fund. The latter, which is funded with the state's gas tax, is an interesting possibility. Would a state that's spending $2 billion on road construction in the next two years really shift money for road construction to public transit?

Realistically, this could be it for KRM. There's no money right now for anything, and any sort of extra tax will face a helluva challenge from just about everyone. Plus, everyone seems focused on transit at the moment, which seems to leave little room for commuter rail.

Here's the info we have to go on:

Doyle's statement today
Doyle's "Basic RTA Structural Guidelines"
The J-S story

State Rep. Robin Vos, R-Caledonia, issued a statement Tuesday criticizing the Milwaukee County sales tax:

After months of inner-party strife over how to keep KRM commuter rail afloat, Governor Doyle introduced a plan today to increase the sales tax in Milwaukee County and break apart the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Transit Authority into smaller pieces to avoid continual battles between factions throughout the three-county region. Rep. Vos (R-Caledonia) says neither the tax hike nor the new structure would be necessary if Democrats would simply focus on transit priorities.

“The Milwaukee bus system is in peril and it needs to be fixed,” said Vos. “But the fight over how to fund it stems from stretching the money too thin for projects like KRM that aren’t financially viable.”

Vos, a staunch advocate for referenda in the case of sales tax increases, says this new hike will be placed on families at a time when they can least afford it. Doyle says the increase has been approved by the voters. Vos disagrees, saying a new referendum should be required because of the current economy and because the previous question was substantially different - stipulating some of the revenue be directed toward park funding and emergency medical services.

“When the families of Milwaukee face record unemployment and have been beaten down by the effects of the current recession, we should not be taxing them more,” explained Vos. “Rather than spending $50 million on new trains, Governor Doyle should have placed a higher priority on Milwaukee transit to avoid this new tax.”

Vos says it’s unfortunate that Doyle is more interested in figuring out how to pay for a new commuter rail system that will probably cost much more than projected, require higher tax subsidies down the road, and likely won’t serve the transit needs of the majority of the region.

“It’s typical government at work,” said Vos. “Ignore the broken program, expand another piece of the program, and then raise taxes to fix the broken part when it gets to a near-emergency situation.”

Vos continued: “Now is not the time to expand our transit system, we need to work to fix what’s broken with existing dollars and greater efficiencies. The tax increases will continue to get bigger as the projects get bigger.”

Doyle's gambit: Gov to meet with legislators next week on KRM

Word is Gov. Jim Doyle is planning to meet with southeastern Wisconsin legislators next week to talk about regional transit.

No doubt the governor will have to explain vetoing Milwaukee County's sales tax increase to improve its bus system. The veto has Milwaukee County legislators aligned against KRM, which hurts Racine's chances of connecting to Milwaukee and Chicago by train. (Though the bigger benefit is attracting development around a train station in the State Street area, which needs some outside cash to turn things around.)

But it seems KRM may not be dead - just heading back to the beginning. Doyle initially proposed a true regional transit authority to cover Milwaukee, Racine and Kenosha counties. Clever legislators - hastened by Sen. John Lehman's stance against a sales tax - decided to split Doyle's RTA into two pieces in hopes of being all things to all people.

Doyle thwarted their plan with his veto pen and now seems ready to take a run at a single regional transit authority. But Lehman stands in the way. Doyle's plan would require some sort of sales tax increase to pay for KRM and buses throughout southeastern Wisconsin. While this is an elegant solution to eroding public transit, it could come at a steep political cost.

Lehman is likely facing a tough challenge from Republican Rep. Robin Vos next year, and a vote in favor of a sales tax increase could hurt his re-electability quotient. But the reality is Lehman's going to have a tough time fighting off Vos even if he does stand up to the governor and torpedo KRM in the process.

This is the best chance Racine has to fix KRM and its bus system, align itself with Milwaukee and Chicago and bring lucrative development to the central city. It's up to Lehman to make this happen. (And here's a thought on how to deal with Vos' opposition: Take out the Caledonia KRM station and add one halfway between Kenosha and Racine, which would be a short bus ride to UW-Parkside. If you're not going to support investing hundreds of millions of dollars in your district, maybe that money has to go somewhere else.)

Silence on KRM

Short of our story on the Senate budget endangering KRM, no one's covered this angle of the budget. Why is that?

The Senate passed the budget 17-16 with Sen. John Lehman voting for a budget that likely will kill the prospect of commuter rail through Racine. State Rep. Cory Mason and Kerry Thomas, of Transit NOW, are both concerned about the Senate budget's impact on KRM, yet the JT, The Journal-Sentinel and the Kenosha News have ignored this issue.

Maybe they're waiting for the outcome of the conference committee between the Senate and the Assembly, where a budget will emerge for Gov. Jim Doyle to sign. But now is the time to examine why one Racine legislator seems to be working to save KRM and another seems OK with killing it, albeit subtly.

Backtrack: Senate budget endangers KRM, cuts bus funding for Racine

KRM commuter rail's prospects dimmed Thursday with passage of the Senate's budget.

The Democratic-led body made a series of potentially fatal changes to the version passed by the State Assembly (which is also controlled by Democrats), decisions that place the state at odds with the Federal Transit Authority, which would provide the bulk of the money needed to extend the commuter rail line from Kenosha to Milwaukee with stops in Racine and Caledonia.

In fact, Rep. Cory Mason, D-Racine, told us, "The Senate version won't be approved by the federal government and will stop KRM in its tracks."

The Senate's budget calls for a $16 rental car tax to pay for commuter rail and a 1 per cent increase in Milwaukee County's sales tax to pay for the county's buses and parks. The Assembly had raised the $16 rental tax approved by the Legislature's Joint Finance committee to $18 and agreed to a 0.65 per cent sales tax for Milwaukee County.

But the Senate took out a key provision that required half of the Milwaukee sales tax increase to be dedicated to mass transit and rejected the Assembly's call for $1 of the rental car tax to help pay for Racine's and Kenosha's buses. (Read the Legislative Fiscal Bureau's comparison of the Senate and Assembly budgets here. The section on transportation begins on Page 90.)

In addition, says Mason, "They literally prohibited Milwaukee County from participating in a southeast county RTA, which the Federal Transit Authority says is absolutely necessary."

The moves could kill KRM because they defy requirements laid out by the FTA. There's a consensus that the Assembly version of the KRM plan, which was based on the Joint Finance version, was acceptable to the federal government, but changes like the ones approved the Senate would be unacceptable. In essence, the Senate is trying to kill KRM with its budget.

The Senate KRM proposal specifically hurts Racine because the city would have benefited from having a portion of the rental car tax supporting the city's bus system, thus helping the city's budget. Bus systems are an important part of commuter rail because trains do little good without solid mass transit to get people to and from the train station.

We called Sen. John Lehman's office Thursday afternoon for comment, but a legislative aide said he was still reviewing the comparison between the Senate and Assembly budgets.

Kerry Thomas, executive director of Transit NOW, said the Senate version "really diminishes the KRM project. If you put in commuter rail you have to have interconnected buses. The Assembly version offered a solid foundation; what the Senate did is take away some of the things that really worked for Racine and Kenosha. removing the interconnectedness."

She pointed out that Lehman "was very much behind the Assembly version, but there are many more senators in Milwaukee." Still, she offered one bit of optimism: "It's not like the Senate version is what we're stuck with; there's still got to be a conference committee..."

Here's the Fiscal Bureau's comparison of the Senate and Assembly provisions:

Assembly: Rename the KRM Authority, in the Joint Finance substitute amendment, the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority (SERTA). Specify that SERTA is the only entity in Kenosha, Milwaukee, and Racine counties that could apply to the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for federal transit funding assistance. Also, specify that the Milwaukee Transit Authority and operators of any transit system in Kenosha or Racine counties that is eligible to receive state mass transit operating assistance and develops a plan for a transit project that requires FTA approval, would be required to submit such plans and federal funding applications to SERTA, rather than directly to the FTA.

Increase the vehicle rental fee from $16 to $18 per rental transaction (the vehicle rental fee could continue to be indexed annually as under Joint Finance). Specify that revenues equal to the amount derived from $1 of the vehicle rental fee would be provided both to the City of Kenosha and the City of Racine for their respective transit systems if each city generates new funds to match the vehicle rental tax revenues. Specify that SERTA would only be allowed to provide Kenosha and Racine revenues from the vehicle rental fee if the cities have demonstrated that they have established a new funding source to produce matching funds for those revenues. Allow for revenues equivalent to up to $2 of the vehicle rental fee to be used for SERTA administration. Specify that the remaining revenues from the vehicle rental fee could be used for costs related to the KRM commuter rail project, including the planning, engineering, construction, maintenance, and operation of the project.

Specify that no municipality within Kenosha or Racine counties, other than the cities of Kenosha and Racine, would be allowed to have a stop on the KRM commuter rail line unless the municipality provides a sustainable funding mechanism to contribute to the existing Kenosha or Racine transit systems.

Modify the appointments to the SERTA board by specifying that the Kenosha County board chair, rather than the Kenosha County Executive, would appoint the Kenosha County member to the board.

Specify that SERTA would be an eligible applicant for the southeastern Wisconsin transit capital assistance program that would be created under the Joint Finance substitute amendment.

Require that the KRM commuter rail project include a stop in the City of Milwaukee at the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Bay Street.

Here's the Senate budget:

Senate: Rename the KRM Authority, as proposed in the Joint Finance substitute amendment, the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority (SERTA). Modify the appointments to the SERTA board by specifying that the Kenosha County board chair, rather than the Kenosha County Executive, would appoint the Kenosha County member to the board. Specify that SERTA would be an eligible applicant for the southeastern Wisconsin transit capital assistance program that would be created under the Joint Finance substitute amendment. Require that the KRM commuter rail project include a stop in the City of Milwaukee at the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Bay Street.

Rental car tax to pay for KRM line

Nearly 16 hours after their meeting was scheduled to start, state legislators voted Friday morning to pay for commuter rail through Racine County with a $16 rental car tax.

WisPolitics.com waited out the committee and has details.
And WisconsinEye.com has video.

The gist: Sen. John Lehman got his cake and ate it too. Lehman fought against a sales tax increase to pay for the KRM commuter rail line to connect Kenosha to Milwaukee with stops in Racine and Caledonia. He convinced the Democratic-controlled committee to reconsider a rental car tax as an alternative to the sales tax.

The committee voted for the plan, approving the $16 rental car tax, which would be indexed annually to the consumer price index.

The Joint Finance Committee first voted to remove Racine and Kenosha from the regional transit authority included in Gov. Jim Doyle's budget. The committee voted to allow Milwaukee County to create a 1 percent sales tax to pay for transit, parks, cultural services and emergency medical services.

It also created a regional transit authority to manage KRM. The RTA would include Milwaukee, Racine and Kenosha counties and use the rental car tax to pay for the rail line. The RTA, which would be appointed by mayors and County Board presidents (not County Executives - a move to prevent Scott Walker and Bill McReynolds from making appointments), could also issue up to $50 million in bonds.

Lehman told WisPolitics the compromise allowed communities to choose their own way to pay for commuter rail and buses.

"What we're seeing now is the result of communities making it very clear what they want to do in their own sweet way about transit" Lehman said.

Eight reasons Lehman is wrong on KRM

Sen. John Lehman looks ready to play the KRM spoiler role this week by voting against Gov. Jim Doyle's proposal to create a regional transit authority to pay for commuter rail and local bus systems. Here's his quote in the JS:

"I'm not sure many people around the state realize the aversion to sales taxes there is in Racine County," Lehman said, adding that people are still mad about "that little one-tenth of one percent of a sales tax for Miller Park."

Here are 8 reasons why Lehman's assessment is wrong:

1. The RTA isn't a multi-million corporation that pays its employees millions of dollars to play a game many people could care less about.

2. The proposed RTA isn't located in western Milwaukee County. KRM would stop in Racine and Caledonia, and Racine's bus system would get needed money.

3. Racine and Caledonia would actually gain economic benefit from the RTA. Racine County was included in the Miller Park stadium tax with the dubious claim that Brewer fans would stay in the county. KRM stations would generated development.

4. George Petak made a back room deal in the middle of the night to flip his support in favor of the Miller Park stadium tax. That's what made people angry.

5. The RTA's sales tax could be used to offset local property taxes - not a professional sports stadium.

6. Lehman's political base is in Racine, not western Racine County. He shouldn't take his base for granted.

7. State Rep. Robin Vos, R-Caledonia, has already staked out the anti-KRM position. If Vos runs for Senate, Lehman has already lost the KRM issue.

8. Lehman's KRM stance is a failure to lead. That may cost him more at the polls than voting for KRM.

Another $16K for KRM ...

Organizers of KRM are raising $1 million for another study for the proposed commuter rail system. Racine's share of the study's cost is $16,667, according to a letter written by Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission Executive Director Phil Evenson.

The new study is needed to submit KRM to the Federal Transit Authority in mid-2009 for additional money to proceed to the preliminary engineering stage of the project. Basically, that means doing all of the work needed to begin construction.

The study is funded by local, state and federal governments. Along with Racine, Kenosha and Milwaukee are contributing funds, as are Racine, Kenosha, Milwaukee counties. The funding formula is 80 percent covered by the federal government, 10 percent by the state and 10 percent by local governments. Racine County is also being charged $16,667 for the study.

As a KRM supporter, the money is a no-brainer to me. But with Rep. Robin Vos in Caledonia, I wonder how much sense it makes to keep pushing studies. Vos is set against KRM and the multi-million dollar investment in his community. As long as he opposes it, there's little chance Republicans in the Assembly will back KRM, and Gov. Doyle has shown no interest in fighting for the project.

But the studies must go on! Here's a question: If we would have taken all of the money spent on studies over the years and simply built KRM, would it be running by now?

Rep. Vos raises $83K for re-election

State Rep. Robin Vos is off to a nice start in his bid for re-election. He's raised $83,538 for the fall race against Linda Flashinksi. It's hard to say how much money Vos will need to hold the seat. It's a Republican-leaning district and Vos is formidable. But Flashinski has some name recognition from her time with Unified and no doubt Democrats will be gunning for Vos, who is already one of the party's top leaders. In a political year that seems to be leaning Democrat (though there's a long way to go) Vos will need every penny to hold on to his seat. It could get real rough if business money in favor of KRM gets in the mix

Flashinski reported Monday that she's collected $12,956, and has spent $2,608.

Here's Vos' statement:

VOS FINANCE REPORT SHOWS OUTSANDING LOCAL SUPPORT

RACINE - A campaign finance report filed yesterday with Wisconsin's Government Accountability Board revealed that Rep. Robin Vos (R-Caledonia) was successful in raising $83,538 to aid him in his bid for reelection to the State Assembly this fall.

"I'm thankful for the overwhelming support I've received from the people in Racine County," said Vos. "Representing their interests in Madison is the best part of my job."

Rep. Vos noted the importance of gathering the majority of his support from those who vote for him. A Racine Journal Times article reported earlier this year that, compared to all other Racine County state representatives and senators, Robin raises the least amount in out-of-state contributions.

He remarked: "I've always made it a point to run a very grassroots campaign. In 2006, we knocked on every door. This year, alone, we've knocked on more than 5000 doors, and it's our intent to visit every house again before the general election."

Robin explained that during the month of June, as he was collecting enough signatures to have his name placed on the fall ballot, over 100 people volunteered to help him circulate his nomination papers. These volunteers were successful in collecting over 1500 signatures, reportedly the most collected by anyone in the state.

Rep. Vos also prides himself on his accessibility. He calls most constituents back personally to better understand the issues that are of concern to them. In the last legislative session, Vos made more than 3,000 phone calls his constituents. He said it makes no difference if they call, email, or write, he calls them back to assure his constituents that their communications to his office are heard.

"My accessibility is a key component in my ability to gather the support of the community," said Vos. "Because I go door to door, and spend hours on the phone with constituents, I know what the most important issues are to them."

Vos indicated the most frequently-heard concerns right now relate to people's uneasiness about the lagging economy. He also hears complaints every day about Wisconsin's high tax burden, the need to create more high-paying jobs, concerns about accessibility to quality, affordable health care, and the need to have a strong education system in Racine.

The fall election is scheduled for November 4th. Vos is being challenged by Linda Flashinski, the former president of the Racine Unified School Board, and a Caledonia democrat.