Eyman Files $30 Car Tab Petition To Oppose ST3

OLYMPIA, WA - With more than 352,000 signatures supposedly obtained, Tim Eyman on Thursday submit to the Legislature his $30 car tab effort, Initiative 976. Eyman needed at least 259,622 valid voter signatures to file the petition, which he reportedly already had in November 2018 when he said he'd gotten 289,000 signatures.

Eyman's initiative submission marks the fourth time in three years that he's attempted to see the results of Sound Transit 3 repealed in favor of reducing car tabs. Previously just $30 for a $10,000 car, tab fees in Washington skyrocketed for some after the ST3 measure passed with 54 percent voter approval in 2016.

In this latest effort Eyman seeks to:

• repeal or remove authority to impose certain vehicle taxes and fees;
• limit state and local license fees to $30 for motor vehicles weighing 10,000 pounds or less, except charges approved by voters after the measure’s effective date;
• base vehicle taxes on Kelley Blue Book value;
• require regional transit authorities to retire bonds early where allowed; and
• either reduce or repeal taxes pledged to bonds depending on whether bonds are retired by 2020.

Opponents of I-976 argue the initiative would be an extreme step backward by essentially gutting funding for light rail, Sounder service, buses, and bus rapid transit.

Eyman's initiative, opponents say, would make traffic congestion worse, killing transportation investments meant to improve transit in Puget Sound.

Now in the hands of the Democrat-controlled Legislature, I-976 could either be passed into law outright, placed on the November 2019 ballot for voters to approve or deny, or get paired with an alternative measure created by legislators that would also end up being decided by voters later this year.

When it was approved in 2016, ST3 saw its greatest opposition in Pierce County, where nearly 56 percent of voters said 'no' to the measure. But with ST3 projects already underway, such as the Tacoma Dome and Hilltop link extensions, and other projects meant to improve commutes around Pierce County in the works, it's still too early to tell how many south sound voters could change their position on the matter.

The deadline to submit initiatives to the Legislature is Friday, Jan. 4. The Secretary of State's office said signature counting will likely begin early next week.

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AP Photo/Ted S. Warren