Look out CATS, here comes Sensible Charlotte Area Transportation (SCAT). The group will lead half-cent transit tax repeal campaign.
Spokesman Jim Puckett notes that the signature-gathering part of the operation wrapped up last week with 63,000 signatures collected. Here’s where Observer reporter Steve Harrison loses me.
Harrison relates that the county Board of Elections has certified 26,000 of the 35,000 signatures it received. Harrison calls this “a success rate of roughly 70 percent.” Except that it is not.
26,000 is 74 percent of 35,000. And 74 percent of 63,000 signatures is 46,620, a tick under the 48,000 number needed to put the question on the ballot. Put another way the drive is on a path to get 97 percent of the required total. Harrison comes up with a projected total of 44,000 certified signatures, or just 91 percent of the number needed. Big difference.
However, it ultimately should not matter as National Voter Outreach is under contract to get the required number even if it means coming back to Charlotte over the summer to do it. But 1,400 more signatures would be a lot easier to get than 4,000.
In sum, the issue will be on the ballot. Official Charlotte needs to wrap its collective head around that fact.
