[NFBF-L] Florida State Legislative Alert: Action Needed

[Debbie Malone]

Greetings Florida Federationists,
As many of you are aware, at our state convention, we passed several
resolutions. One was

REGARDING PROPOSED DISSOLUTION OF HILLSBOROUGH AREA REGIONAL TRANSIT
(HART).

FL Rep. Michael Owens wants to dismantle the Hillsborough Area Regional
Transit (HART) Authority and create a replacement agency to serve only the
City of Tampa, a Tampa Transit Authority. This would be detrimental to many
residents, including those of us who are blind and have low vision. As
mentioned at the convention, if this attempt is successful, it will most
likely be brought to other counties in Florida. In an effort to head off
this proposal, we're looking for your help.
We need each person to call or email every state representative, regardless
of whether they represent you.
I've included a sample personal letter in this email and as an attachment.
Replace the instructional parentheses with your appropriate words. Short of
creating a spreadsheet for 120 representatives, the simplest way to
accomplish this would be to visit the State Representatives' web page and
click on the "Contact Us" link for each Representative. There you will find
phone numbers for the offices and a form to submit an email.
We realize this requires a tremendous amount of work, but we at the
National Federation of the Blind of Florida are not afraid of the work it
takes. Thank you in advance for your efforts.
With sincere appreciation,

Following is the sample letter. Please feel free to reach out to me with
questions.

Dear (insert name of elected official),

I am writing about my concern over a proposal by FL Rep. Michael Owens to
dismantle the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit (HART) Authority and
create a replacement agency to serve only the City of Tampa, a Tampa
Transit Authority. The rationale according to Owens and Hillsborough County
Commissioner Josh Wostal is that residents of unincorporated Hillsborough
County should not have to pay property taxes for a service primarily used
by Tampa residents. This proposal could cut transit service for more than 1
million residents in unincorporated Hillsborough County including
communities such as:

   - *Northwest:* Carrollwood, Keystone, Lutz, Cheval
   - *Southshore:* Riverview, Apollo Beach, Ruskin, Gibsonton
   - *East:* Brandon, Valrico, Seffner, Mango, Thonotosassa
   - *West:* Westchase, Town 'n' Country, Citrus Park, Egypt Lake-Leto

*Who Will Be Impacted?*

   - *Essential Workers*: healthcare, hospitality, service industry, and
   more
   - *Students*: commuting to colleges, high schools, training programs and
   extracurricular activities
   - *Seniors & Riders with Disabilities*: who depend on paratransit and
   bus service for vital services

The City of Tampa population is over 400,000 (2024 Census) while
Hillsborough County boasts over 1.5 million residents.

While the proposal allows for agreements, it could lead to reduced or
eliminated services in less densely populated areas if the county chooses
not to fund them. According to HART data, nearly half of ridership and most
paratransit trips occur outside Tampa city limits.

(Give an example if you can as to how this would affect you).

All citizens of Hillsborough County deserve access to public transit
services throughout the County. Please do not support a proposal to
dismantle HART.

Respectfully,

(Your name and maybe the district you live in)




-- 
*Debbie Malone*
*774-786-0177*
*dmalone510 at gmail.com <dmalone510 at gmail.com>*

*DebbieMalone.org <http://DebbieMalone.org>*
Amazon Author Page <https://www.amazon.com/~/e/B07RVCRR5R>
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