TRI-CTIIES, Wash. – Would members of the public vote to reduce funding for Ben Franklin Transit? That’s the question that sparked controversy at Thursday night’s Ben Franklin Transit board meeting.
Members of the community and multiple organizations throughout Benton and Franklin County showed up to voice their concerns.
Some members of the board said they wanted to give voters the decision to reduce taxes.
People at the meeting said if a proposal to cut the tax went to the ballot this November, voters may think the board supported that decision.
Others also said voters would see the tax cut on the ballot and vote yes without understanding the detrimental impact it could have on people who need public transit to get around.
After almost four hours, Thursday night’s board meeting ended with a vote to table the decision until 2026.
Community members still have concerns that budget cuts are on the minds of some board members.
“This is very personal to me because I use Dial-A-Ride obviously,” said community member Jaime Torres. “So, anything they cut is problematic.”
Alice Armes and members of her family have used Dial-A-Ride for years. She said the potential plans to reduce hours or even days of the week for Dial-a-Ride scared her.
“The only way we have to go to the store, get to our doctors, or even just go meet a friend for coffee,” said Armes. “You know, it gives us our independence.”
The measure has been tabled, meaning it is still planned to be looked at again by the board in two years.
One thing stopping the board members from voting was potential state-wide changes to transit funding. The Climate Commitment Act is up for voters to potentially repeal through Initiative 2117 and might impact statewide transit budgets.
