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Sound Transit decision makers must be accountable to voters, say lawmakers

January 22, 2016 By The Suburban Times

Sen. Steve O’Ban and Rep. Mark Harmsworth seek to increase accountability for oversight of Sound Transit given its significant taxing authority and responsibility for large infrastructure projects in the Central Puget Sound area. Their proposal would move Sound Transit’s currently appointed board, to one elected by districts. Sound Transit, which provides high capacity transit in King, Pierce and Snohomish Counties, is currently overseen by 18 city and county elected officials appointed by each county’s executive.

“Sound Transit has responsibility for billions of our tax dollars,” said Rep. Mark Harmsworth, R-Mill Creek, who serves as assistant ranking member on the House Transportation Committee. “It’s time our local communities have a direct say in electing those who will be making those decisions.”

The proposal would establish a regional transit authority board composed of nineteen nonpartisan members elected from separate electoral districts in the three-county area. A five-member commission appointed by the governor would develop the districts with equal population represented.

The regional transit authority has taxing authority, subject to voter approval, to develop and operate Link Light Rail, regional express buses and Sounder commuter trains.

“Sound Transit is not directly accountable to Sound Transit voters,” said O’Ban, R-Pierce County. “The immense size of its revenue and scope of work doesn’t match the oversight for budget decisions much larger than even some of the state’s largest cities. That structure demands direct accountability to voters, a move away from political appointments and more hands-on and active management.”

While 2.5 million people currently live within the transit authority boundaries, the current board structure of appointed elected officials leaves more than 1 million people unrepresented. Cities with a member on the board make up about 1.5 million residents with large cities including Kent, Renton, Kirkland and Auburn without directly elected representation.

Calls to move away from the appointment process date back to 2003 when then Gov. Gary Locke’s Blue Ribbon Transportation Committee recommended a new approach. Since then a variety of proposals have attempted to address the issue with different approaches.

“Voters eventually supported two infrastructure packages and we want Sound Transit to succeed in its mission to create a transportation system to move people around the Puget Sound in a cost-effective and efficient manner,” continued O’Ban. “This bill will add a level of accountability and oversight to a bureaucracy that desperately needs it in order to reach that objective.”

Sound Transit is expected to seek voter approval in 2016 for a third round of projects and funding called “ST3” after state lawmakers provided authorization in the 2015 transportation investment package.

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Comments

  1. Neel Blair says

    January 28, 2016 at 4:54 pm

    Neither of the sponsors want ST to exist, certainly not in its current form. This isn’t about accountability at all. It’s about guaranteeing inefficient function of what has become a model public resource (early and under budget routinely on major projects and milestones). Because when the government does well, the talking points of electeds like these 2 ring hollow.

    They don’t want to save taxpayer dollars and make them more efficient nor accountable. They want to save face and their ideology from a competently run public good. Their entire political existence is predicated on saying the government can’t do anything right.

  2. Phillip Burger says

    January 29, 2016 at 8:04 am

    We are already represented by elected officials:

    www.soundtransit.org/About-Sound-Transit/Board-of-Directors/Board-members

    Elections specific for Board positions would be a great opportunity for corruption to become a problem. Contractors and labor will fund the campaigns of those who run. Cost of projects would increase and no one would be able to explain why. It’s a familiar problem.

    The present arrangement is cost effective and members are accountable to their constituents and respective Councils. It’s working at least as good as the alternative.

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