The University Park City Council will consider a resolution on Tuesday calling for reducing its sales-tax contribution to the Dallas Area Rapid Transit Authority.
“The City of Plano has requested that the City of University Park consider approving a resolution stating a position of support reducing the sales and use tax collection of the Dallas Area Rapid Transit Authority to not exceed three-quarters of a cent as well as supporting capping sales and use tax revenues at the amount equivalent to 2024 collections until a reduction can occur,” according to University Park documents.
The resolution is similar to one Plano City Council members unanimously approved last week. In Dallas, Chief Financial Officer Jack Ireland has recommended diverting 25% less of its sales-tax allocation to DART to help ease the strain on the City’s budget as it fully funds the Dallas Police & Fire Pension System, The Dallas Express has reported.
Dallas City Council member Cara Mendelsohn supports the resolution.
“Thank you @cityofplanotx for your leadership,” she posted on X. “Plano considers reducing payments to DART as ridership falls.”
In another post, Mendelsohn said the City of Dallas is headed in the same direction as Plano.
“Unanimously added to the legislative priorities for the City of Dallas Government Performance & Financial Management Committee. It will be discussed and voted on in September by the full city council. ‘Seek restructuring of DART sales tax contribution.’”
The Dallas City Council and its committees are in recess until August, when the Government Performance & Financial Management Committee is scheduled to meet.
As DART member cities, University Park, Plano, Dallas, Irving, Carrollton, Addison, Cockrell Hill, Garland, Farmers Branch, Richardson, Rowlett, Glenn Heights, and Highland Park direct a 1-cent sales-tax contribution to DART that accounts for roughly 75% of the entity’s $1.8 billion budget.
DART’s CEO Nadine Lee has warned that losing a quarter of the sales-tax funding it receives from Dallas would ruin the agency’s operations.
“… any change to the amount of money that we collect would have a devastating effect on what we produce today,” said Lee, as reported by DX.
Last month, DART board members approved an updated strategic plan to guide the agency for the next ten years, DX reported.
University Park council members did not return a message seeking comment.