Albany council narrows local fuel-tax outreach to 5' and 7.5' cents per gallon, targets November 2026 ballot timing

Albany City staff presented options and asked the City Council for direction Wednesday on whether to pursue a local fuel tax to fund street maintenance. After nearly two hours of discussion, councilors agreed to narrow outreach to two proposed rates and indicated a preferred election window and policy approach for public engagement.

Director Chris Bailey (presented as "Director Bailey" in the meeting packet) told councilors the city has completed extensive outreach and technical work on street condition and funding and asked whether staff should focus outreach on one or two cents-per-gallon options. Bailey said internal analysis and ODOT sales data suggest Albany would generate about $400,000 in revenue per penny.

Council direction: Councilors coalesced around two outreach options — 5 cents per gallon and 7.5 cents per gallon — for staff to use in the public education and polling work ahead of a possible ballot measure. Bailey said the city estimates roughly $400,000 per penny, translating to about $2.0 million at 5 cents and about $3.0 million at 7.5 cents; staff also showed a 10-cent example that would produce about $4.0 million and a 15-cent example at about $6.0 million.

Timing: Council discussion ranged widely. Several councilors urged the city avoid a special election because of cost and short lead time. After debate about voter turnout, political timing and competing state initiatives, staff recorded consensus to pursue a November 2026 general-election target for outreach purposes and to work backward from the county's August 2026 ballot-title deadline. Some councilors said they would consider May 2027 if November proved impractical; staff emphasized the earlier the ballot-title deadline passes, the less staff can legally communicate about the measure.

Sunset: Staff reported focus-group feedback that many residents prefer a time-limited (sunset) tax; about 65 percent of research participants preferred a five-year sunset. Councilors generally rejected a short sunset, with multiple members saying a five-year expiration would be too short to deliver visible results and that the council could repeal a tax later if revenue were no longer needed. The prevailing direction to staff was to not include a short statutory sunset in outreach options.

Equity and messaging: Councilors and staff discussed regressivity (a fuel tax applies equally regardless of income), the need for clear reporting on how funds would be used, and the importance of showing concrete outcomes if voters approve a measure.

Next steps: Staff will focus outreach and community education using the two chosen scenarios (5 cents and 7.5 cents per gallon), prepare financial estimates tied to those numbers, and bring refined materials and a proposed ballot title back to the council if the council later votes to put a measure on the ballot. Bailey emphasized that tonight's direction was not a final vote to place a measure on the ballot.

Provenance: The local fuel tax discussion began with staff remarks at 2250.48 seconds and concluded with staff's wrap-up around 5668.8647 seconds.