Plain English Breakdown
The effective date is listed as empty in the official metadata; while the bill was chaptered on October 13, 2025, the specific start date for these provisions is not provided in the source text.
Sacramento Transportation Authority Funding, Tax Areas, and Toll Lane Bonds
This law allows the Sacramento Transportation Authority to spend tax money on infrastructure supporting transit-oriented development, collect taxes in smaller areas with voter approval, and issue bonds for toll lanes approved by the state.
What This Bill Does
- Allows STA to use sales tax revenue to build or improve infrastructure that supports infill or transit-oriented development in areas nominated by local governments and included in regional plans advancing greenhouse gas reduction goals.
- Permits STA to charge a transactions and use tax only in parts of Sacramento County if voters in those specific areas approve it.
- Authorizes STA to issue bonds to pay for building high-occupancy toll lanes or other toll facilities approved by the California Transportation Commission within Sacramento County.
- Requires STA to sign an agreement with CARTA before using toll revenue from a CARTA facility to repay its own bonds, and requires CARTA's governing board to review and approve the expenditure plan.
Who It Names or Affects
- The Sacramento Transportation Authority (STA)
- Voters in specific areas of Sacramento County
- The Capital Area Regional Tolling Authority (CARTA)
Terms To Know
- Transactions and use tax
- A fee added to the price of goods or services that people buy, which goes into a fund for transportation projects.
- High-occupancy toll lanes
- Special highway lanes where drivers must pay a fee unless they have multiple passengers in their vehicle.
- Bonds
- Money borrowed by the government to fund big projects, which is paid back over time with interest using future tax or toll money.
Limits and Unknowns
- The official text does not state a specific date when these new rules will officially begin.
- Tax collection in smaller areas only happens if voters in those exact locations approve the measure.
- STA must get approval from CARTA's governing board for spending plans before issuing bonds tied to toll revenue.