Alan Marchione

By Alan Marchione 

A recent article by Jennifer Stielow, Vice-President of the Arizona Tax Research Association (ATRA,) addresses the sneaky and legally unsound language provided in 416/417. Pinal County pursued legislation this year under HB2156, which would have allowed a half-cent county transportation sales tax to be levied “at different rates among the various sales tax classifications instead of one fixed rate…” This was intended to exempt certain types of businesses from the tax, thus preventing local business opposition to the proposed tax increase (primarily auto dealers). The bill was opposed at the Legislature, due to the bad precedent that would be set by allowing county sales tax bases to differ from the state and further deviate from tax uniformity. For Pinal County to favor one business over another in regards to paying a county-wide tax, one must ask themselves…why? Here is a link to the article: https://azcapitoltimes.com/news/2017/07/20/legality-of-pinal-county-transportation-sales-tax-carve-out-questionable

The Goldwater Institute has asked Pinal County to remove the proposition from the ballot, or face costly litigation should the measures pass. It contains misleading information, with direct conflicts within section 42-6106 of the Arizona Revised Statutes, and utilizes the language of the failed HB2156. Pinal County charged forward with the exemptions despite exceeding their lawful authority. You can view the Institute’s letter here: https://www.azfree.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Goldwater-Letter-to-Pinal-County.pdf

See through the smoke screen of pretty promises, cherry-picked statistics, and fear mongering on how it’ll improve your quality of life. Even if 416/417 were substantiated in court, the proposed additional sales tax offers little to Maricopa’s residents, and according to the information provided, there’s absolutely no guarantee the 347 would be widened. The proposed widening of the 347 towards the I-10 freeway will end at the Pinal/Maricopa County lines, with no assurance Maricopa County will complete the remaining stretch. Although the proposed widening of the 347 is seemingly alleviating, additional lanes are not the most appropriate fix. There’s a chronic issue of accidents and fatalities plaguing turn-lanes from the 347 to adjacent roads: Casa Blanca, Riggs, and the very dangerous turn at Maricopa Road to Wild Horse Pass Casino. In the unfortunate event of a fatal accident, all lanes would be shut down despite how numerous; still blocking our primary artery in and out of the city. It would be more appropriate to mitigate the inherent dangers of multiple stop-lights on a busy highway with grade separations.

There’s an incredible $640 million at stake and the sponsors are pulling out all the stops. One could perceive special interest, and Pinal County, are “railroading” us to illegally vote yes. It’s ironic those continuing to propose additional taxes, are those who most benefit from their passage. I’m asking you join me in putting a stop to Pinal County’s illegitimate sales tax increase, and prevent wasteful spending on avoidable litigation. Please look for your mail-in-ballot, as Pinal County is counting on your complacency. For more information regarding this voting session, please visit: http://www.pinalcountyaz.gov/Recorder/Documents/2017NovemberElectionFAQ.pdf.


Alan Marchione is a former Maricopa City Councilmember and 11-year resident of Maricopa.