Don't trust them when they say Sales Tax is the only option!
If you’ve been following the push for the new 1% sales tax, you’ve probably heard one line over and over again: “This is the only way we can fund transit.” That statement simply isn’t true. The truth is that the sales tax is just the most convenient option for those in power, not the only option available under the law.
Three Options They Floated (and Quickly Dismissed)
Even the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance’s representative, Attorney Larry Shaheeh, Jr., has admitted there are other ways. At least three alternatives were raised:
- Raising individual income taxes
- Raising corporate income taxes
- Tax Increment Financing (TIF)
But each was brushed aside with the excuse that “no one” will go for them. Why not? Because those options would place at least some of the responsibility on corporations and the wealthiest, rather than squeezing working families at the register.
The Sales Tax: The Easiest Political Choice
Sales taxes are easy to push politically because the argument is that sales taxes are spread across everyone. But that’s exactly the problem. They hit hardest on those with the least flexibility in their budgets, families who are already stretching every dollar to cover rent, groceries, diapers, and school supplies. A sales tax is regressive by design.
Other Options Already on the Table
What officials aren’t telling you is that other funding mechanisms already exist under current law. These include:
- Corporate privilege license fees: Local governments can recapture revenue by reinstating business fees that were previously eliminated.
- Using the current transit tax to fund incremental improvements.
- Tourism and hospitality taxes: Hotel occupancy and prepared food taxes could be expanded or redirected to ensure visitors, not just residents, pay into the system they use.
Each of these options targets those who directly benefit from transit expansion, instead of balancing the bill on everyday shoppers.
Options Raleigh Could Approve
If local leaders truly lobbied Raleigh with the same energy they’ve poured into this sales tax referendum, other options could be unlocked:
- A $1 fee on each airline passenger in and out of Charlotte Douglas International: With over 60–70 million passengers a year, that would raise at least $60–70 million annually, enough to pay for 2,000 bus shelters, with $50M left over, without touching the grocery budgets of local families.
- Dedicated corporate transit tax: Even a small levy on the largest corporations in the region could generate steady revenue while ensuring those who benefit most from transit help pay for it.
- Regional vehicle fees: Fees on ride-share companies, commercial fleets, or delivery services that use the roads intensively could help offset infrastructure costs.
The Real Question: Whose Burden Should It Be?
The fact that multiple options exist shows this was never about “the only way.” It’s about who pays. Do we keep going back to working families like an ATM, or do we finally ask corporations, developers, and industries profiting from Charlotte’s growth to pay their fair share?
Before you vote, remember: a sales tax isn’t the only option. It’s just the one they want you to believe is inevitable.