State Leaders Consider Lifting MARTA Spending Restriction
MARTA currently has a lot going for it, including increased ridership and expansion to Clayton County. Now the transit agency may get another item on its wish list.
For years, MARTA has been lobbying for the permanent removal of what’s known as the 50/50 restriction. The state requires MARTA to spend 50 percent of its revenue on operations and the other 50 percent on capital projects.
“Hopefully we will have this unintended, long-term, outdated mandate eliminated from MARTA to provide us the flexibility on the finance side to do some more things with our cash on hand,” MARTA spokeswoman Rhonda Briggins Ridley said during a December presentation of the agency’s 2015 legislative goals.
A bill under consideration in the Georgia House would finally lift the 50/50 restriction.
Rep. Jay Powell, a member of MARTA’s legislative oversight committee, says the bill is far more likely to pass this year than in the past.
“I just think the legislature in general is a lot more comfortable with MARTA as an organization as being fiscally responsible and responsive to its customers and riders,” said Powell.
Under the bill, MARTA would have to submit to a management audit every four years.
Meanwhile, a separate bill that MARTA may not be as keen on would give the state voting rights on its board. Currently, MARTA is one of the largest transit agencies in the country that receives no funding from the state.
A MARTA spokesman declined comment for this story, saying the agency is still reviewing the bills.
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