By a 5-2 vote, Hillsborough County Commissioners have approved ballot language that will go before voters for a one cent sales tax transit referendum in November.
The board approved a revision to two earlier drafts that was proposed by Commissioner Rose Ferlita, who was mocked by some in the press for her deliberations at last week's discussion. Commissioners had deadlocked at 3-3 on whether or not to include the 75%-25% split of rail and bus projects vs. road projects into the ballot language itself, after Ferlita suggested a third option.
That option would make explicit the 75/25 split, but would also reword the language so that it would begin by referencing the tax first, followed up by the actual transit project. She said that language would echo how the 1996 Community Investment Tax was worded.
