EDITORIAL—When Measure T failed in 2022, the Madera County Transportation Authority and all our member agencies had to examine what we did wrong and figure out how to deliver a package of investments that would reflect our residents and business community's needs and expectations. So, we started over. The new Measure T expenditure plan on this year’s ballot reflects almost two years of reassessing, adapting, and changing the form and structure of the Measure to meet those needs and expectations.
We gathered a steering committee of regular people from each of the five County Districts instead of having our elected officials appoint people to make it more independent. They toured the County and met six times over the past year. They unanimously supported the Measure that was sent to the Board. Yes. A group of citizens formed a Political Action Committee to place the Measure on the ballot with a lower threshold for passage, but – despite claims made by some – it is the same Measure. Period.
Measure T 2024 bears little resemblance to any of its predecessors. With a 20-year horizon, it is not a “forever tax” as was proposed in 2022. We listened and heard people wanted more investments in our local streets and roads so that perhaps – finally – we could improve our pavement condition countywide. That’s why 80% of all revenues will go to those local roads. That category also includes options for evacuation planning, which residents and businesses in the eastern part of the county badly wanted. It contains options for bike and pedestrian improvements in areas where they are desired and even Safe Routes to Schools.
We heard that many of our communities felt overlooked, lacking the investments they see happening in other areas. The Measure now sets aside 10% of all revenues for disadvantaged communities using the same criteria as those used by the state and federal governments for grant eligibility.
Regional projects identified in our Regional Transportation Plan, updated in 2022, will be eligible for 14.5% of the funds. We doubled investments in transit to address the future needs of our aging population, which may include point-to-point service and on-demand options.
Finally, we drastically improved the process for Citizen Oversight, mandating quarterly public meetings and presentations to the MCTA Board, offering the option of an independent auditor selected by the Oversight Committee, and enhancing outreach to support better transparency.
It’s hard to overstate the immense amount of outreach conducted to develop this new expenditure plan for Measure T. More than 40 meetings and presentations, nine town halls, and a Measure website with thousands of visitors provided opportunities to ask questions and review all expenditures made for the last 17 years. We conducted two statistically valid polls to confirm what we thought we heard from the public.
In the end, I am very proud of this effort, my staff, and all the partners, steering committee members, and others who developed this community-based plan, which has the potential to bring over three-quarters of a billion dollars to our County and Cities. Our transportation infrastructure is crucial for our future economic growth, safety, and community sustainability. For more information, please visit MeasureT-2024.com.
