Town council recommends regional transportation plan be placed on March 2026 ballot to avoid funding gap

The town council voted unanimously to recommend that the county Board of Supervisors place the Regional Transportation Authority92s new 20-year plan, RTA Next, on the March 2026 ballot so voters can decide whether to replace the expiring regional sales tax and avoid a gap in transit funding.

The move came after a presentation by Mike Ortega, interim executive director of the Regional Transportation Authority, who described the plan as a regionwide program of roadway, transit, bicycle and pedestrian projects and said "everyone who lives and works in this region will benefit from this plan." Ortega told the council the timing matters because state statute requires collection of a voter-approved tax to begin on April 1 following the election, and that going to voters in March would avoid a break in funding for roughly $32,000,000 in annual regional transit services, including dial-a-ride/paratransit and fixed routes.

The RTA Next plan uses a 20-year planning horizon and, according to presenters, applies a conservative (pessimistic) sales-tax revenue projection to reduce the risk of the kind of shortfall the region experienced under the 2006 plan. Presenters said the 2006 plan projected about $2,700,000,000 in revenue but actual receipts through the end of the later program are expected to be about $1,700,000,000, a shortfall officials blamed primarily on lower-than-expected sales-tax growth and higher construction costs.

Key elements described for the council include a flexible pavement-rehabilitation program (described by presenters as reconstruction that targets a minimum 10-year design life, not short-term chip seal), safety funding (presenters cited about $10,000,000 in a safety line item), approximately $5,000,000 for arterial and collector pavement rehabilitation, and a transit allocation the presentation listed as $1,414,000,000 for dial-a-ride/paratransit and fixed-route services. Presenters also listed three larger regional projects called out in the plan: La Villita/Sahuarita Road/Nogales Highway (presentation language: "about 30,4 million dollars"), Pima Mine Road (I-19 to Nogales) ("about 23,000,000"), and a Sahuarita Road interchange project where presenters said a $15,000,000 RTA investment would leverage approximately $85,000,000 in Arizona Department of Transportation funds.

Council members and staff discussed program delivery, oversight and lessons learned from the earlier RTA. Mike Ortega and Shane (the town manager) described proposed administrative-code changes and increased staff engagement intended to give the RTA more active responsibility in facilitating delivery, including alternative contracting methods, escalation procedures for project delays, and quarterly engagement with a reconstituted citizen advisory committee. Ortega said those steps aim to reduce late-stage shortfalls and move projects forward when jurisdictions are not ready.

Members of the public offered both support and opposition during the item. A resident identified as Mrs. Sundberg urged the council to vote no, saying the projects on the list "do not serve us well regionally" and criticized the selection of specific road improvements as locally focused. Lisa Haggins, who identified herself as a Sahuarita resident, told the council she supported placing the plan before voters and highlighted transit benefits and local economic opportunities. Christie Street, representing the Southern Arizona Leadership Council, also urged council support and described the plan as a long-term regional investment.

Mayor Murphy moved that the council recommend the plan be transmitted to the Board of Supervisors for placement on the March 2026 ballot; Council Member Priolo seconded. The council recorded a voice vote and the motion carried unanimously. The next procedural step cited in the presentation is a request that the Board of Supervisors consider calling the March 2026 election at its September 2 meeting.

The presentation and discussion made clear the plan will only take effect if voters approve it and that, under the presenters' reading of state law, the March timing is necessary to avoid interruption in transit funding that otherwise could occur after the existing tax expires June 30, 2026. The council92s action was a recommendation to the county board; the county board must formally call the election for the plan to appear on the March ballot.