Sahuarita council unanimously recommends RTA "Next" plan be placed on March 2026 ballot

The Town of Sahuarita Council voted unanimously to recommend that the Pima County Board of Supervisors place the Regional Transportation Authority(RTA) "RTA Next" plan on the March 2026 ballot, Mayor Murphy said at a special meeting where RTA staff and regional leaders presented the 20-year transportation plan.

The recommendation came after a presentation by Mike Ortega, interim executive director of the RTA, who described the plan as a regional, 20-year program of road, transit, bicycle, pedestrian and safety projects built on conservative revenue estimates and lessons from the 2006 RTA program. Ortega said the RTA board has already adopted the plan and passed a resolution asking the county to call the election.

Why it matters: Council members and RTA staff emphasized timing. Under state statute cited in the presentation, a sales-tax-based transportation measure must take effect April 1 following the election; Ortega and town staff said a March 2026 vote is necessary to avoid a funding gap when the current RTA tax expires on June 30, 2026. Ortega warned that without timely voter approval, regional transit programs that now cost about $32,000,000 a yearincluding paratransit and fixed routescould be suspended after June 30, 2026.

Ortega described the plan as "a plan that represents a regional best effort" and said "everyone who lives and works in this region will benefit from this plan." He said the RTA used conservative (pessimistic) revenue projections developed with the University of Arizona and set an "artificially constrained" base budget of about $2,670,000,000 for planning purposes while leaving room to allocate additional revenue if receipts exceed the pessimistic scenario.

Project highlights referenced at the meeting include a portion of La Vienta from Sahuarita Road to Nogales Highway (approximately $34 million), Pima Mine Road from I-19 to Nogales (about $23 million), and a Sahuarita Road interchange reconstruction that the presentation showed as $15 million in RTA investment leveraged to approximately $85 million including ADOT funding. Other line items noted in the presentation included $10 million for safety improvements, $5 million for arterial and collector pavement rehabilitation, and $14 million for transit operations (dollar-ride paratransit and fixed-route). The plan also includes provisions for active-transportation and wildlife crossing work.

Council members asked about causes of the shortfall in the 2006 program. Ortega and RTA staff said the primary drivers were a large shortfall in sales-tax revenue compared with 2006 projections and significant cost increases; project delays were a smaller factor. Ortega outlined administrative changes he said would improve delivery, including more active RTA involvement in project delivery, use of alternative delivery methods and an updated administrative code that would allow the RTA to re-prioritize projects if partners are delayed.

Public comment at the meeting was split. A resident who identified herself as Mrs. Sundberg told the council she opposed the plan, calling RTA projects "totally local roads" that did not provide regional benefit to Sahuarita. Lisa Haggins, a Sahuarita resident, said she supported the plan and noted local benefits, saying, "I don't wanna drive to Tucson every day to go to work." Christie Street, representing the Southern Arizona Leadership Council, also urged council support, calling regionalism "necessary to accomplish" long-term infrastructure investment.

Formal action: Mayor Murphy moved and Councilmember Priolo seconded a motion recommending that the RTA Next plan be forwarded to the Pima County Board of Supervisors for placement on the March 2026 ballot. The council voted unanimously; the motion carried.

The council's recommendation does not enact the tax locally; it requests that the county call the election consistent with the RTA board resolution. If the Board of Supervisors calls the election and voters approve the plan, collections would begin on April 1 following the successful election, per the statute referenced in the presentation. The council asked staff and RTA representatives to continue public outreach and to provide more detail on administrative rules and accountability provisions that RTA staff said are being developed.

Votes at a glance: Town of Sahuarita Council motion to recommend the RTA Next plan be placed on the March 2026 ballot Motion: recommend RTA Next be submitted to Board of Supervisors for March 2026 election; Mover: Mayor Murphy; Second: Councilmember Priolo; Vote: unanimous (all present voted "aye"); Outcome: approved.