HART will get large share of new transportation tax

TAMPA, Fla. - The Hillsborough County Commission is beginning to reveal where the revenue from a one-cent tax approved by voters in November will be distributed in an effort to improve Bay Area transportation.

The tax increase is projected to raise $276 million the first year. HART, the county’s bus system is slated to get about 45%.

The rest will be allocated according to population size. Hillsborough County will get the lion’s share, followed by Tampa, Temple Terrace, and Plant City. The Metropolitan Planning Organization will get the remaining 1%.

Exactly how the money will be spent is still up in the air.

“Not a single project has been put out,” Hillsborough County Commission Vice Chair Pat Kemp told FOX 13. “We’ll be doing that in the next few months.”

If all goes as planned, money will start to be distributed to cities and organizations at the beginning of next year.

There could, however, be a holdup. A lawsuit has been filed to overturn the sales tax. The issue will go before a judge the first week in May.