As the Jacksonville Transportation Authority seeks to get its budget back in the green, agency leaders say they plan to ask the mayor and City Council to allow JTA to dip into its share of the local gas tax.
JTA Interim CEO Cleveland Ferguson III explained how the agency envisions using those funds.
“To pay down the debt as well as the severance packages that will be offered to our employees over these next couple of weeks,” said Ferguson.
JTA typically brings in more than $30 million a year through its share of the local option gas tax, and the funding supports more than a dozen projects.
The biggest include the Neighborhood Autonomous Vehicle Innovation program (NAVI), the Ultimate Urban Circulator (U2C), the Skyway and the Emerald Trail.
Every time you fill up your gas tank, you pay an additional eight cents on the gallon to fund those projects that are now in question, and you’ve been paying that extra tax for the past four years.
Some Councilmembers like JTA Liaison Rory Diamond (R-District 13) wants to see all three projects more or less scrapped if council revisits the tax.
“We’ve got to stop the NAVI. We’ve gotta end the Emerald Trail. We’ve got to save JTA,” said Diamond.
Councilmember Jimmy Peluso (D-District 7) agreed with ending the NAVI, but argued the Emerald Trail should be preserved.
“The Emerald Trail is one of the best new projects coming to the City of Jacksonville. It’s gonna connect a lot of our older neighborhoods, make it so that you don’t need to be in a car to get around,” said Peluso.
Groundwork Jacksonville, one of the organizations involved in the creation of the Emerald Trial, indicated JTA claims the reallocation of gas tax dollars will not impact the design phase of the trail’s next two sections, but no such commitment was made in terms of their construction.
“We are concerned that this will delay construction of those segments,” said Groundwork Jacksonville CEO Kay Ehas in an emailed statement.
Mayor Donna Deegan’s office vowed to back the Emerald Trail if the gas tax deal is reworked.
“Any interlocal agreement changes must be negotiated with the administration – and Emerald Trail funding must be protected,” said a spokesperson with the mayor’s office in an emailed statement.
Council Finance Chair Will Lahnen (R-District 3) argued more information is needed before any decisions are made, as all three projects may involve potential clawbacks of grants if they’re paused or suspended.
For example, city leaders have been told for years canceling the Skyway could result in JTA having to pay back $100 million to the federal government.
“We’re kind of at the beginning of that process, figuring out what are the alternatives with that money,” said Lahnen.
Council President Nick Howland (R-Group 3 At-Large) announced City Council will soon begin digging into the specifics.
He plans to reassign the Financial Audit and Oversight Select Committee to tackle the issue.
“I have spoken with JTA and the Administration about quickly reconvening the FAO Select Committee under a new charge - that is, a constructive review of all Local Option Gas Tax projects in order to stabilize the Authority and optimize spending on the transportation initiatives that matter most to the people of Jacksonville,” said Howland in a statement.
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