(The following story by Dara Kam appeared on the Palm Beach Post website on April 30, 2009.)
TALLHASSEE, Fla. — Supporters of the controversial Sunrail/CSX bill will dangle a $181 million TriRail carrot before South Florida Democratic senators in hopes of toppling opposition.
South Florida lawmakers have been angling for a fiscal fix for the commuter rail system in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties but as the bill currently stands, it doesn’t pass muster for them.
TriRail supporters want a $2 per day rental car tax to create a reliable funding source from one year to the next.
One proposed solution: give Palm Beach County, Broward and Miami-Dade voters the opportunity to approve the surcharge by referendum. If voters reject it, the county commission could make it happen anyway.
That won’t cut it, the commuter rail advocates say, because county commissioners who want to get reelected won’t overturn the will of the public.
Another idea floating out there, expected to come up as an amendment during debate on the bill (HB 1021) this afternoon, would allow the county commissioners to approve the surcharge and postpone the referendum on the measure until 2014.
TriRail would rake in $181 million over the five years until the referendum, according to state transportation officials pushing the deal along with Gov. Charlie Crist and incoming House Speaker Dean Cannon, an Orlando Republican.
That puts pressure on South Florida lawmakers who previously objected to the $500 million-plus deal in which the state would pay transportation behemoth CSX to buy 61 miles of track, pay for improvements on other lines and assume liability for wrecks.