A sales tax increase for improving local transportation will probably be back on the ballot in Amador County in two or three years.

Members of the Amador County Transportation Commission at their meeting on Nov. 15 hashed over why the ballot measure received only 48.5 percent of the vote, when it needed 66.6 percent to win approval.

The commission had requested the county's Board of Supervisors to put the measure on the ballot to raise money for road improvements throughout the county by increasing the sales tax by a half cent.

"We learned a lot of things about how to run a ballot campaign for sales tax measure in this county," said Charles Field.

Over the next few months, Field said, his office will seek direction over whether to spend more staff time and ACTC resources to try again in 2008 or 2010.

"Maybe we should do another survey and find out among all those who voted, what did they know, what encouraged or discouraged them," he said. Field said that one of the local workers for the Measure K campaign called and told him that "they want to go again," and that he and other campaign workers had learned a lot.

Meanwhile, Field told the commissioners, the agency will be working on the new Regional Transportation Plan, which has to be done by 2009, but which he hopes to complete by 2008.

It will undoubtedly be as clear from the new Regional Transportation Plan as it was from the old one, he said, that there is no other source of funds to make up the gap in funding, "unless something changes drastically, and the federal and state are not showing any changes."

Commission Chairman Bill Breiner said he wondered how San Joaquin County managed to get more than 70 percent approval for its transportation sales tax measure.

Field responded that in fact the voters in San Joaquin County approved the measure by more than 80 percent, but he pointed out it was not a new sales tax they were seeking, but reauthorization of a sales tax measure that had previously been in effect.

What is apparent, he said is that San Joaquin County has "some very serious traffic congestion, and people know it and see it." While Amador County has traffic congestion problems looming on the horizon, many people don't yet see it.

"We see it," said Field. "But it's an American tradition to not respond and react until you're hit with it."

Also, Field said, San Joaquin County has been delivering projects and the public can see the results of their increased sales taxes at work.

"Find out who they used as a consultant," Breiner said.

Commissioner Louis Boitano suggested the transportation commission also talk to the Election Department and break down the results precinct by precinct, "so we can formulate a plan."

Brent Parsons, a city council member in Sutter Creek and an alternate on the traffic commission, noted that the November ballot "seemed to be stacked with bond measures for money and funding." He said he heard from a number of people who said, "Enough is enough." It is possible, Parsons said, that voters didn't differentiate between them and realize that the local tax measure was more pertinent to them.

"Upcountry, I heard people who still believe Caltrans will take care of it," he said.

The fact that it was a county tax measure even though the transportation commission was going to be responsible for implementing it may also have had an impact, Field said.

Boitano concurred, noting that "People didn't trust the board (of supervisors)" and have a general distrust of government.

One way to overcome that problem, Field said, would be for the transportation commission to get a joint powers agreement with the county and its cities, similar to that of the Amador Regional Transportation System - "just for the work we are doing already."

At present, he said, the transportation commission is doing a lot of work on issues on a "seemingly volunteer or good-will basis," and that is not a good administrative arrangement.

Boitano asked if a transportation commission joint powers agreement would allow the ACTC to put a tax measure on the ballot themselves, rather than having the Board of Supervisors do it for them, as was done in this election.

Yes, Field replied, but it would still need the approval of the Board of Supervisors and the cities in the county.

In other business before the agency, the commission accepted the resignation of its chairman, Bill Breiner, who was first named to the commission in 1992 and served as its chairman since 1994.

"The highlight of these 14-plus years has been the efforts of the commission, with strong support from the various entities from Amador, Alpine, and Calaveras counties, to construct the Amador Bypass around Sutter Creek and Amador City," Breiner said in his letter of resignation.

Field told the commissioners at the beginning of the meeting that the Highway 49 bypass was 90 percent complete as of Nov. 6 and that the contractors are still promising to finish it by Dec. 31.