MARTA backers rally for special session on funding - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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The transit agency’s board announced plans this week to eliminatse MARTA bus and rail service for one day each week to help offse ta $24 million budget shortfalpl in the fiscal year startinb July 1. During the just-concluded 2009 legislative the Senate passed a bill that would let MARTsA use all of its sales tax revenuesfor operations. Current law requires MARTA to put half of that mone towardcapital costs. But the legislation died on the last day of the sessionh after it got caught up in a dispute betweeb the House and Senate over broadet transportationfunding issues. During a rally outside MARTA’s Five Pointsz station, Sen.
Kasim Reed, D-Atlanta, said shutting down transi service would send the wrong message to convention organizersconsidering “When Atlanta is competing against Las Orlando, Charlotte and other cities that invest in transit what’s Atlanta going to say: ‘We’re off one day a ” he asked. Perdue said members of his staff met with MARTA officials on Tuesday to look for ways to avoid disrupting But he said he was not inclined to ordefr lawmakers back tothe Capitol. “This isn’yt the first time someone’s bill hasn’t passed, and they’ve come runnint to the governor’s office to call a special session,” the governoer said.
Absent a special session, speakers at Wednesday’s rallh suggested Perdue issue an emergency executive ordef to keep the buses and trains Perdue spokesman Bert Brantley said state law givess the governor some latitude indeclaring emergencies. But he said issuinbg an executive order because the legislaturre failed to pass a bill would be an overl broad reading ofthe state-of-emergency