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Richardson officials back DART ILA, urge governance reform; GMP decision postponed
Summary
Richardson City Council approved resolutions enabling participation with Dallas Area Rapid Transit in local TIF economic development and endorsed a governance principle for DART board reapportionment, while asking staff to delay action on the DART General Mobility Fund.
Richardson city leaders voted unanimously on Sept. 4 to move forward with measures that would let the city partner with Dallas Area Rapid Transit on transit-related economic development and to press for changes to DART governance, while deferring a decision on DART's newly proposed General Mobility Fund.
The council approved consent agenda items authorizing the city manager to execute an interlocal agreement (ILA) template with DART that would allow DART to share a 50/50 portion of incremental sales tax revenue with Richardson's tax increment reinvestment zones (TIFs), and separately approved a resolution supporting a governance change that would give each DART member city a board seat with a weighted vote. Both actions passed as part of the consent agenda with a 7-0 vote.
Why it matters: The ILA would allow Richardson to capture half of DART's portion of sales tax growth above an agreed base within participating TIFs for economic development projects. The governance resolution is aimed at ensuring member cities retain representation and a voice on the DART board; city staff and area mayors are pursuing a longer-term statutory fix through the Texas Legislature.
Gary Slagle, chair of the DART board, and Richardson City Manager Don Magner presented the update and asked council to approve two consent items (A2 and A3) and to defer the third (A4). Slagle and Magner described three parallel workstreams: (1) an ILA that would permit a five-year participation window for DART to split incremental sales tax revenue with TIFs, (2) a board reapportionment effort to ensure each city has a seat and a weighted vote, and (3) the General Mobility Fund (GMP), a DART program to allocate roughly 5% of DART's annual sales tax to certain donor cities.
Magner said the proposed ILA establishes a five-year enrollment period; projects approved during that five-year window may run for a 10-year project life, so a project begun at the end of the ILA could receive benefits up to 15 years from execution. Under the proposed arrangement, DART would concur on a base value for participating TIFs and split incremental sales tax above that base 50/50, with Richardson’s share deposited into its TIF fund for economic development uses.
Council members praised Richardson’s involvement in the regional working groups that have produced the ILA template and governance proposal. Council Member Corcoran asked about governance mechanics; Magner and Slagle explained that the working groups expect to develop a weighted-vote methodology (population, sales-tax contribution, or hybrid) and to present it for further review before statutory changes are pursued. Council Member Justice and others said delaying formal action on the GMP would allow Richardson to participate as a neutral partner in manager-level negotiations.
On the GMP, Slagle and Magner described a DART board decision that set aside about $42.6 million in FY 2024 for donor cities identified as contributing more sales tax than they receive in service. DART had requested that donor cities adopt a resolution affirming they wished to receive GMP funds and would cease pursuing legislation to reduce DART’s voter-approved 1¢ sales tax. Richardson’s staff recommended postponing action on the GMP (consent item A4) so city managers can continue negotiations in a working group and coordinate with regional partners. Council approved that recommendation by leaving A4 off the approved consent agenda.
Council approved the consent agenda (except A4) on a 7-0 vote. The motion to approve the consent agenda less item 10A4 was made by Council Member Justice and seconded by Council Member Barrios. The council also asked staff to return with any weighting methodology for board votes for review before any legislative approach is advanced.
Slagle said the Silver Line rail service is nearing operation, noting DART is planning an announcement and that the line is expected to be close to running by the end of DART’s fiscal year; he did not provide a firm start date.
Ending: Richardson staff will continue to participate in the regional working groups. City Manager Magner said the city aims to present recommendations on governance and sales-tax options to the council by Nov. 1, ahead of DART’s November 18 reapportionment vote and potential member-city election timetables.
