1 00:00:02,560 --> 00:00:06,040 Speaker 1: You're listening to Taking Stock with Bim Box and Kathleen 2 00:00:06,120 --> 00:00:10,320 Speaker 1: Hayes on Bloomberg Radio. Well, if you happen to live 3 00:00:10,480 --> 00:00:14,520 Speaker 1: in Atlanta, Detroit, Los Angeles, and Seattle, you're gonna find 4 00:00:14,600 --> 00:00:19,120 Speaker 1: something in addition to presidential choices in November, you're going 5 00:00:19,160 --> 00:00:23,720 Speaker 1: to find ballot initiatives that we're going to design to 6 00:00:24,200 --> 00:00:28,920 Speaker 1: increase infrastructure spending. Here to tell us more, Stephanie Beasley, 7 00:00:29,040 --> 00:00:33,760 Speaker 1: Capitol Hill transportation reporter from Bloomberg b n A. Stephanie, 8 00:00:33,760 --> 00:00:35,919 Speaker 1: thank you very much for being with us tell us 9 00:00:35,960 --> 00:00:39,279 Speaker 1: about how ballot initiatives seem to be at least one 10 00:00:39,280 --> 00:00:43,760 Speaker 1: of the big drivers for infrastructure spending. Sure, and thanks 11 00:00:43,800 --> 00:00:47,320 Speaker 1: for having me. UM. So some lobby groups industry lobby 12 00:00:47,360 --> 00:00:51,120 Speaker 1: groups of transportation industry have been following UM. What they 13 00:00:51,120 --> 00:00:55,120 Speaker 1: say is an unusually high number ballot measures that would 14 00:00:55,200 --> 00:00:59,560 Speaker 1: raise revenue for transportation projects throughout the country. UM. A 15 00:00:59,560 --> 00:01:03,120 Speaker 1: lot of the by increasing taxes, majority sales taxes, but 16 00:01:03,200 --> 00:01:07,280 Speaker 1: also fuel taxes and different states and counties. UM. And 17 00:01:07,319 --> 00:01:09,480 Speaker 1: what they say is happening is that, you know, state 18 00:01:09,520 --> 00:01:12,280 Speaker 1: and local governments are trying to sort of fill in 19 00:01:12,440 --> 00:01:16,560 Speaker 1: where they feel like Congress UM hasn't done enough by 20 00:01:16,560 --> 00:01:21,600 Speaker 1: providing more federal funding for infrastructure projects, and specifically, you know, 21 00:01:21,640 --> 00:01:25,759 Speaker 1: the American Public Transportation Association has said that they are 22 00:01:25,800 --> 00:01:29,920 Speaker 1: seeing a lot of sort of desire to increase revenue 23 00:01:29,959 --> 00:01:35,960 Speaker 1: for public transit projects. Stephanie, as you report on this 24 00:01:35,959 --> 00:01:39,600 Speaker 1: this this topic, does it strike you that, uh, one 25 00:01:39,600 --> 00:01:42,760 Speaker 1: of the reasons that this these measures tend to pass 26 00:01:43,000 --> 00:01:46,800 Speaker 1: is that if I am raising a small tax on 27 00:01:46,920 --> 00:01:50,200 Speaker 1: myself and or my neighbors, um, and the money I 28 00:01:50,240 --> 00:01:53,080 Speaker 1: know then is going to go to build something where 29 00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:55,840 Speaker 1: I live. That it's a it's something that is a 30 00:01:55,880 --> 00:01:58,480 Speaker 1: step that is is easier to fund sometimes maybe than 31 00:01:58,480 --> 00:02:01,440 Speaker 1: getting these things passed in Congress, right, I think there 32 00:02:01,560 --> 00:02:06,160 Speaker 1: is some reluctance in Congress to raise taxes. You know, 33 00:02:06,200 --> 00:02:09,000 Speaker 1: there have been proposals for years to raise the federal 34 00:02:09,040 --> 00:02:12,480 Speaker 1: gas tax, and there's sort of an idea that maybe 35 00:02:12,520 --> 00:02:16,080 Speaker 1: this isn't something that is going to be attractive to 36 00:02:16,440 --> 00:02:19,760 Speaker 1: voters generally, you know, the American public, and it could 37 00:02:19,760 --> 00:02:22,520 Speaker 1: be something that would work against lawmakers at the at 38 00:02:22,520 --> 00:02:25,440 Speaker 1: the federal level, but at the local level, which you're 39 00:02:25,480 --> 00:02:27,680 Speaker 1: seeing here, as you said, is a lot of um 40 00:02:27,800 --> 00:02:31,400 Speaker 1: sort of smaller tax increases. For example, in l A County, 41 00:02:31,800 --> 00:02:35,360 Speaker 1: you have like a point five percent UH sales tax 42 00:02:35,560 --> 00:02:38,560 Speaker 1: proposal that they're working with, which would raise about a 43 00:02:38,600 --> 00:02:40,920 Speaker 1: hundred billion dollars over the next forty years. So this 44 00:02:41,000 --> 00:02:43,960 Speaker 1: is something really long term they're looking at, and I 45 00:02:44,000 --> 00:02:46,720 Speaker 1: think probably something that they feel would be palatable to 46 00:02:46,800 --> 00:02:50,600 Speaker 1: their voters. Now, as Deephanie, I understand that at least 47 00:02:50,800 --> 00:02:55,000 Speaker 1: in two states, well in California and in Washington, on 48 00:02:55,040 --> 00:02:57,920 Speaker 1: the ballots for Los Angeles and Seattle, they've also they've 49 00:02:58,080 --> 00:03:02,120 Speaker 1: they've had a lot of oppos to these UH to 50 00:03:02,240 --> 00:03:06,800 Speaker 1: these ballot initiatives. Is this because they are uncomfortable or 51 00:03:07,000 --> 00:03:09,880 Speaker 1: do not like the actual projects, or is it because 52 00:03:09,960 --> 00:03:11,880 Speaker 1: they are opposed to the way they're going to be 53 00:03:11,960 --> 00:03:18,520 Speaker 1: paid for? UM. I think whenever you talk about raising taxes, UM, 54 00:03:18,560 --> 00:03:21,400 Speaker 1: that is not something that UM, you know, people who 55 00:03:21,480 --> 00:03:25,320 Speaker 1: are fiscally conservative I tend to tend to agree with. 56 00:03:25,480 --> 00:03:27,640 Speaker 1: So I think, as I talked about at the federal level, 57 00:03:27,720 --> 00:03:30,720 Speaker 1: there's been that that issue, but also at the local level, 58 00:03:30,760 --> 00:03:32,560 Speaker 1: I think you have the same thing. There are people 59 00:03:32,600 --> 00:03:35,360 Speaker 1: who are just opposed to the idea of raising taxes 60 00:03:35,840 --> 00:03:37,880 Speaker 1: And where do you see you know, maybe this is 61 00:03:37,960 --> 00:03:40,640 Speaker 1: still a small amount. Um. It still might not be 62 00:03:40,720 --> 00:03:45,400 Speaker 1: something that, um, you know, people who are physically conservative 63 00:03:45,400 --> 00:03:47,600 Speaker 1: will get behind. Still, it still seems to me that 64 00:03:47,640 --> 00:03:49,920 Speaker 1: if I know it's going to build a road in 65 00:03:50,040 --> 00:03:54,200 Speaker 1: my state or my county, that my fiscal conservatism maybe 66 00:03:54,320 --> 00:03:56,760 Speaker 1: is a little bit less in part because I know 67 00:03:56,800 --> 00:04:02,720 Speaker 1: the money will presumably get spent effectively. Regarding raising gas taxes, 68 00:04:03,120 --> 00:04:05,720 Speaker 1: I guess another question along these lines is is it 69 00:04:05,840 --> 00:04:08,240 Speaker 1: somewhat easier perhaps to get people to vote for a 70 00:04:08,320 --> 00:04:13,200 Speaker 1: small tax like ten cents per gallon when gas prices 71 00:04:13,200 --> 00:04:15,520 Speaker 1: have fallen so much compared to where they were just 72 00:04:15,560 --> 00:04:18,120 Speaker 1: a couple of years ago. I think that's what the 73 00:04:18,200 --> 00:04:21,320 Speaker 1: hope is you have in Oregon. I think it's clack 74 00:04:21,640 --> 00:04:23,360 Speaker 1: clack of us. I'm going to try to say that, right, 75 00:04:23,440 --> 00:04:26,000 Speaker 1: that's pretty good. I'm from Washington State. That was a 76 00:04:26,000 --> 00:04:28,680 Speaker 1: pretty good pronunciation. Go for it, right. So they're considering 77 00:04:28,800 --> 00:04:31,960 Speaker 1: a pretty small increase over the next seven years. But 78 00:04:32,360 --> 00:04:35,039 Speaker 1: what is interesting is you don't see as many of 79 00:04:35,080 --> 00:04:38,359 Speaker 1: the gas tax hi tax hike proposals here as you 80 00:04:38,400 --> 00:04:42,400 Speaker 1: do the sales tax. Um. So what you're saying there 81 00:04:42,440 --> 00:04:46,680 Speaker 1: was mention of Atlanta. They're also considering raising their sales 82 00:04:46,720 --> 00:04:50,200 Speaker 1: tax by about point five per cent um to help 83 00:04:50,240 --> 00:04:54,120 Speaker 1: expand their public transit system. UM. So, I think what 84 00:04:54,279 --> 00:04:56,560 Speaker 1: you are seeing is a lot of small amounts UM. 85 00:04:56,600 --> 00:04:58,479 Speaker 1: And I think what they're trying to do at the 86 00:04:58,640 --> 00:05:01,800 Speaker 1: state and local levels is to really explain to the 87 00:05:01,880 --> 00:05:05,080 Speaker 1: voters how those dollars will be applied. So you see 88 00:05:05,200 --> 00:05:07,640 Speaker 1: very specific. You know, they'll say it's going to be 89 00:05:07,680 --> 00:05:10,720 Speaker 1: applied to these public transit projects or maybe like ten 90 00:05:10,839 --> 00:05:13,919 Speaker 1: highway projects that we're looking at, or we're gonna, you know, 91 00:05:14,560 --> 00:05:18,520 Speaker 1: sort of improve the bike and pedestrian walkways, that kind 92 00:05:18,560 --> 00:05:20,760 Speaker 1: of thing. So so, I think people are trying to 93 00:05:20,760 --> 00:05:24,080 Speaker 1: be very specific into explaining to voters how they're going 94 00:05:24,080 --> 00:05:27,080 Speaker 1: to spend the money. And UM, it seems like the 95 00:05:27,080 --> 00:05:29,360 Speaker 1: groups are pretty optimistic. I think there's a more than 96 00:05:29,440 --> 00:05:33,760 Speaker 1: seventy chance um of these ballot measures passing, at least 97 00:05:33,800 --> 00:05:37,920 Speaker 1: according to UM groups like the American Public Transportation Association 98 00:05:37,920 --> 00:05:42,480 Speaker 1: and Transportation for America. Okay, it's Definitie Beasley fascinating conversation 99 00:05:42,680 --> 00:05:47,039 Speaker 1: ballot measures in California, Washington State and others to get 100 00:05:47,040 --> 00:05:50,719 Speaker 1: the transportation system fixed up. I'm Kathleen Hayes along with 101 00:05:50,800 --> 00:05:52,520 Speaker 1: Pim Fox and this is Bloomberg.