Opinion: Tax Silicon Valley Big Tech to rescue BART and other Bay Area transit

With annual deficits for Bay Area transit agencies approaching million the scramble is on to find the revenue needed to keep BART and the region s other bus and rail systems operational Senate Bill sponsored by two Bay Area lawmakers is a well-meaning but poorly formed attempt to fill the financial gaps by raising as much as million a year through a sales tax that would be put before voters in Taxing sales would be regressive putting the burden of transit recovery squarely on the backs of the people who could least afford it Related Articles State budget includes million in loans to keep Bay Area transit agencies running while new tax sought Shooting injures one at East Bay BART station Opinion VTA should abandon billion San Jose BART extension that s already out of date Power outage interrupts BART facility in central east Contra Costa County Clipper Card glitch results in free rides on fare hike day for a large number of agencies There s a better explanation sitting in our backyards Tax specific of the bulk profitable influential businesses ever created Silicon Valley synonymous with technological innovation worldwide is home to Apple Alphabet Nvidia Intel Cisco HP and Meta which combined generated about billion in profits in Yet the companies gave back little to Bay Area communities that need it the bulk As a impact the region is marred by failing infrastructure and clogged roadways and multiple of our organization workers can t afford to live within miles While publicly traded companies pay specific form of business taxes there are no corporate funds dedicated to assistance the mass transportation needed for the bulk of the region s workforce So rather than burden workers and small businesses who can ill-afford it with yet another sales tax we should help fund BART and the other transit agencies via a designated tax on the corporations that like to brag about their Silicon Valley roots but give little back in return Granted BART is not blameless in this financial dilemma The latest billion BART budget ignores the agency s financial realties by failing to address a million annual structural deficit beginning July Taxpayers deserve better BART should explore reducing overtime by a third and strategically lowering its workforce target of employees nearly more than a decade ago But that will require confronting labor unions something BART management is reluctant to do These ongoing management issues are notable and should be addressed instantly Unfortunately the current emergency can t be ignored New funding sources are desperately needed if BART is to maintain even bare-minimum facility levels With work commutes still down hourly utility cuts and station closures could occur as early as next summer without additional sustainable revenue Despite Trump s tariffs and looming inflation threats California remains an economic powerhouse the fourth largest economic activity in the world Cities and regions nationwide that are far less financially healthy face similar post-pandemic transit threats and are addressing deficits through corporate taxes New Jersey for example expects to generate million annually with a five-year transit fee on corporation profits exceeding million We should do what s right in the Bay Area and include businesses in the equation when solving transit s problems The authors of SB should amend the bill and include an option for a modest fair transit tax on large businesses to prevent cuts in organization while transit agencies reduce costs and provide incentives to regain ridership Liz Ames is a BART board member