I will vote for the 1-cent sales tax because Mecklenburg County residents desperately need an adequate and sustainable public transportation system that puts fewer cars on the road, improves pedestrian safety, and encourages the use of alternate transportation, including bicycles, buses, and trains. Still, it bothers me that as a state we seem to want to build critical infrastructure through regressive taxes and privatization only. Shifting costs to the people who can least afford it is a short-term solution that in the end takes a toll on all of us.
Until we solve that inherent inequity, I think the Town should do all it can to acknowledge and respond to the impact of the sales tax burden on people with very low incomes. That’s where stronger partnership and collaboration with our local nonprofits can make a difference. We don’t need more programs. We need to use public resources to amplify existing services and make sure we’re reaching as many people in need as we can.
(This post is excerpted from my responses to a series of candidate questions posed by Davidson’s online local news resource: News of Davidson. The full article appeared on that site on Friday, August 29, 2025 and can be reached here.)
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