The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority may go to the ballot as early as November to seek an increase to Cuyahoga County’s sales tax rate, which is already the highest in Ohio at 8%.

Without the increase, the first round of service cuts will be necessary next year, officials said. But with the increase, RTA officials said they could restore and expand service, making public transit a more relevant option across the county.

The increase of up to 0.5% would be the first tax request sought since county residents in 1975 voted overwhelmingly to establish a 1% tax for the newly created RTA.

A decision from the board could come as early as next Tuesday, July 7.

General Manager India Birdsong Terry asked board members to pass a resolution by then that would authorize a ballot measure to increase the sales tax for RTA from 1% to 1.5%. Board members also are being asked to decide whether to put the issue before voters this November, in May 2027 or in November 2027.

Birdsong Terry said action was needed soon so RTA could begin planning either for a vote this November or for service cuts in 2027, including potential reductions to routes or schedules.

The idea is not a surprise. Birdsong Terry raised the possibility of a tax request during budget deliberations last year.

Yet RTA Board President Paul Koomar, mayor of Bay Village, said going to the ballot this November seemed “way premature.”

“We’ve got to engage the business community in this recommendation and have them work with us,” Koomar said. “The business community doesn’t have a sense of it. We’ve got to get them on board.”

Board member Jeffrey Sleasman, former senior director of the Fund for Our Economic Future, raised concerns about delaying the ballot issue until next year, saying RTA could face service cuts in the meantime.

“The risk of the status quo is very clear. It’s less service and it’s more stress and struggle for the people in our county, especially the riders,” Sleasman said. “I think there is a very high risk of not doing anything as soon as possible.”

The potential ask comes at the same time that some county government officials - separate from RTA - have discussed the possibility of adding 0.15% to the county sales tax to help pay for future repairs of Progressive Field and Rocket Arena.

Currently, the 8% sales tax breaks down this way: 5.75% goes to the state, 1.25% goes to Cuyahoga County and 1% goes to RTA.

The sales tax accounts for about three-quarters of RTA’s operating budget, bringing in $276 million last year. A 50% increase would amount to about $135 million a year, increasing with inflation.

RTA administrators told the board that voters have approved four of the last five countywide transit tax requests in Ohio. They pointed to successful tax increases of 0.5% in Columbus in 2024, 0.5% in Toledo in 2021, 0.8% in Cincinnati in 2020 and 0.25% in Lake County in 2019.

The one loss cited was this past spring in Canton, where Stark County voters said no to an increase of 0.1%.

RTA reported providing 24.5 million rides last year, up from the all-time low of 17.7 million during the height of the pandemic in 2020, but still below pre-pandemic levels.

Promises of better service

The presentation offered a glimpse of how the campaign could play out if RTA puts the increase on the ballot.

Officials said the additional funding would reduce waits between buses while taking full advantage of a new fleet of flexible rail cars that could provide direct service from the Blue and Green lines in the eastern suburbs to Hopkins International Airport on the West Side.

Mike Schipper, deputy general manager of engineering and project management, spoke in particular about the Health Line along Euclid Avenue. Though it is RTA’s busiest bus route, ridership has suffered since budget constraints forced the agency to reduce service to once every 15 minutes, Schipper said.

Raising the tax by a half-point would allow the agency to put twice as many Health Line buses on the street, coming by every 7.5 minutes, he said.

“Frequency on the Health Line is a huge driver,” Schipper said. “It needs to rebound back.”

Staff also outlined a vision of more weekend service, restoration of routes to the Park-N-Ride lots in North Olmsted and Westlake, exploration of better service to eastern suburbs, and improved service overall for 75% of the existing routes.

The agency said it operates 15-minute or better service within a half-mile of 438,500 county residents, but it could expand that reach to 780,000 residents with another 0.5%.

Birdsong Terry summarized the options in three categories.

• No change in the 1% sales tax earmarked for RTA: the need for $30 million in service cuts beginning next year and severe financial problems by 2029.
• An increase from 1% to 1.25%: 10 years of financial stability and some growth in service for passengers.
• An increase from 1% to 1.5%: 50 years of financial stability and significant growth in service for passengers.

She said she favored the last option, with a strong public messaging campaign.

“Fifty years ago we went for the gusto and that would be appropriate now if we’re going to think about transformation,” Birdsong Terry said. “But we have to make sure we have buy in.”

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