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HomeMy WebLinkAboutIR 7572 INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 7572 tnrtasa December 19, 1991 � �a4 F0R'- To the Mayor and Members of the City Council u z Subject: Transportation Overview and Related Issues Oi3 I. Background In November 1983, Fort Worth voters approved the creation of the Fort Worth Transportation Authority (The "T"). With voter approval, a dedicated sales tax was also levied to support the local share of the public transportation system. The initial sales tax rate was 1J4 of 1% (currently the rate is 1/2 of 1%). In September 1984, the City Council approved an operational agreement with the"T"which provided for the transition from a city operated system to a special authority operated system. The basic terms of this agreement were: 1. Continued operation of the bus system by the City, with the Authority reimbursing these expenses. 2. Administrative and support services continued by the City, exclusive of legal counsel and auditing, reimbursed by the Authority. 3. City provided daily payment to the Authority for all fares, charges and other receipts collected by the City. Excluded from the revenue bond proceeds were federal, state and local shares of any asset sale and payments from the Authority. 4. The Authority established policies and performance standards for transportation services, and established fares and changes to meet the services provided for in the service plan. 5. The Authority also agreed to fund an annual payment to the City to perform certain street improvements related to the "T" operation. (In 1985, the payment was $185,000; the anticipated payment for FY 1991-92 is $3,000,000). The transportation function has continued since 1984 under this contract with traditional bus service limited to the City of Fort Worth as the only member of the regional transportation authority. The term of the operational contract is subject to termination by mutual agreement of the parties, or unilaterally subject to termination on September 30th upon (a) written notice of the intent to terminate nine months prior to the effective date, (b)subject to non-appropriation clause provided that this action is not construed to permit either party from merely entering into other agreements for the same services. ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 7572 �a,«f4 December 19, 1991 X04 cvar 0 To the Mayor and Members of the City Council Page 2 of 4 c,* Subject: Transportation Overview and Related Issues Current sales tax to support the "T" Is approximately $19.8 million annually with an additional$3.9 million in operation grants from the Federal Government. Fares and other fees generate an additional $3.6 million in revenues. The operating budget totals approximately$18 million with a capital budget of$17 million. Presently the Authority has a retained earnings balance of$20.1 million, of this, approximately$15 million is planned for the RAILTRAN corridor improvements and an intermodal center. IL The "T" as a Regional Authority In November 1991, the voters in the City of Lake Worth approved a sales tax referendum which permitted that city to become a member of the "T". Because t-he"T" is created under state law, the manner in which a community may join a system Is clearly enumerated in the state statute and the basic steps leading to entering the Authority are: (A.) the city council of the city desiring to join the authority may call an election op, to levy the sales tax and If approved; (B.) begin collection of the sales tax the following quarter or at the discretion of the comptroller delay the implementation until the calendar quarter (January), (C.) the new territory becomes a full member on the 31st day after the election unless the "executive committee notifies the appropriate governing body in writing before that date, because It Is not contiguous to the existing authority or because the addition would impair the imposition of the sales and use tax authorized by the Act would create a fiscal hardship on the authority". Even after following these steps, It Is Important for the Fort Worth City Council to understand fully that the Authority's Board will continue to be appointed by the Fort Worth City Council with the Tarrant County Commissioners' Court having one appointment(now on behalf of the City of Lake Worth). Ill. FWTA Official Policy Regarding Regionalization Given the statutory commitment to and restrictions regarding regional transportation authorities, the FWTA Board adopted the following policy toward expansion in September 1991: A. The Fort Worth Transportation Authority should respond with interest and enthusiasm to joining attempts of all cities and target participation of certain cities based on the overall goals of FWTA. -ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 7572 December 19, 1991 X04 40ATyp To the Mayor and Members of the City Council Page 3 of 4 *r X Subject: Transportation Overview and Related Issues e 7'! B. The Fort Worth Transportation Authority should assist cities with information. Once a city decides to hold an election to join FWTA, the Authority should provide active and positive assistance in planning the services to be provided and assisting in the education of voters about the plan. C. Service plans developed for joining cities should reflect transit needs, demand and compatibility with the overall FWTA plan. Specific services should be identified for the first year of FWTA membership with the understanding that FWTKs normal service management policies will apply in analyzing the continuation and/or expansion of the offered services. D. Service plans offered to joining cities should be based on an integrated regional system of public transportation and not parochial revenue allocation formulas. E. Overall mobility should be part of FWTA's service plan for joining cities. This should include consideration of transit related street improvements and/or any other services in addition to basic transit service on an annual basis without binding FWTA to a continuing program without further policy development by the Executive Committee. The FWTA has an "Affordability Guideline for Developing a Service Plan for Joining Cities" which is utilized to calculate the cost effectiveness of providing services to other cities. The FWTA's active promotion of regionalization of the transportation system is geared to providing among other things, (a) better access by Fort Worth residents to job markets (13% of Fort Worth residents work outside the City and 13 of the 25 top Tarrant County employers are outside Fort Worth); (b) Fort Worth business will have a broader labor pool due to expanded transportation opportunities (32% of Fort Worth business employees live outside the City); (c) Fort Worth business will have larger consumer bases, tourist opportunities will grow, more sales tax revenue collections will help offset the cost of service; (d)the expanded transportation system will help address air quality problems; and (e) service within the City-can be expanded due to the broadening of the service area. Since the City of Lake Worth has formally joined the "T", a number of important policy Issues have been raised by the members of the Fort Worth City Council. These issues are summarized below: A) The FWTA Board has requested consideration from the City Council to amend the existing contract between the City and the "T"; B) A clear definition of the "T"'s role in the RAILTRAN program; ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 75 72 RT"Ra December 19, 1991 ~6ff0A_7 To the Mayor and Members of the City Council Page 4 of 4 Subject: Transportation Overview and Related Issues +Ot3 C) A more formalized review process regarding the service plan of the "T" to assure that service levels in Fort Worth are not suffering as the FWTA expands to other jurisdictions; D) A formalized spending plan that assures that current fund balances are spent in a "politically accountable manner". These are general groupings of issues that have many ramifications for the taxpayers of Fort Worth. It Is therefore recommended that the City Council and the FWTA Executive Board form working group to resolve these Issues. David Ivory City Manager MGitranspor.ir ISSUED BY TIE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS ----