HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Hillsborough County commissioners said they are pushing back after a judge reportedly rejected a county tax referendum on Monday.
The 30-year, one percent sales tax would have benefited road projects and public transportation across the county.
On Tuesday, commissioners told 10 Tampa Bay that the push for the tax isn't over, and voters should still weigh in.
"I'm suggesting that voters continue to vote for it," said Hillsborough County Commissioner Gwen Myers. "I think for this county, we cannot afford to do nothing. We cannot afford to go backward with this transportation tax. We just cannot afford it."
County commissioners will hold an emergency meeting on Thursday to discuss the judge's ruling and the potential of an appeal.
Commissioner Harry Cohen said no matter the outcome, the ruling is a disappointing development.
"All we wanted to do was give the people of Hillsborough County the opportunity to weigh in on their own transportation future," said Cohen.
However, those who challenged the referendum in court said voters were being misled as to what they were voting for.
On Tuesday, the lawyer representing the opposing stance released a statement, which read:
"The County chose ballot language that led voters to think they were voting for things like new and wider roads in places like Brandon and Tampa. Unfortunately, it didn’t choose that language because it is true. The County chose it because the County wanted people to vote for the tax and this language polled well. Voters have the legal right to fair and honest treatment. The County’s ballot language instead misled them about what their vote does and does not do.
It did not have to be that way. The County could easily have written an honest and accurate ballot question. It chose not to. The fix for that is to elect leaders committed to doing things correctly. It is not to expect a court of law to approve language that so obviously violates the County’s legal duty to make clear and truthful disclosure on the ballot."
The Hillsborough Supervisor of Elections said it's waiting on guidance from the judge on how to move forward.
On Tuesday, the spokesperson for the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections told 10 Tampa Bay:
"We have not yet received a written order. Regarding the process, ballots have already been printed so the ballot itself will not change. When a public measure is ordered to be removed from the ballot, we post notices pursuant to the court’s order. Those notices go in Vote By Mail packets, in privacy booths at voting locations, and on our website, informing voters that any votes cast for the measure will not count for approval or rejection of that measure."
The one percent transportation tax referendum would've approved the raising of sales tax in Hillsborough County from 7.5 to 8.5 percent and allowed transportation officials to have the funds to make roads safer by adding bike lanes, lights, and paving roads.
Something very similar was passed in 2018. Around half a billion tax dollars were collected. That referendum was ruled unconstitutional because voters decided how the money was spent.
However, supporters of the new transportation tax said that this time is different because county commissioners decided to put it on the November ballot.
On Monday, All for Transportation Co-Founder Tyler Hudson, the group behind the one percent transportation tax referendum in Hillsborough County, released the following statement:
"The only losers today are the residents of Hillsborough County who have again had their opportunity to fix our broken transportation system delayed. We will continue to pay the high price of doing nothing and the call for action will only grow louder.
We’re facing a transportation emergency, and we hope the County Commission will explore every legal avenue to bring this question to the voters in 29 days.”
The group declined our interview request on Tuesday.
10 Tampa Bay has reached out to the judge that rejected the referendum but has not yet received a response.