Orange County Commissioners Vote to Advance Sales Tax Referendum to November Ballot

Orange County, Fla. (April 26, 2022) — By a vote of four to three, Commissioners Christine Moore, Mayra Uribe and Maribel Gomez Cordero joined Orange County Mayor Jerry L. Demings in voting to place a Transportation Sales Tax Referendum on the fall election ballot.

This means Orange County voters will have the opportunity to decide on November 8, 2022 if they want a one-cent sales tax increase that would be a dedicated funding source for transportation needs.

“I’m happy that our Board, at least the majority, saw fit to give the power to the people and let residents decide whether to tax themselves in this manner,” said Mayor Jerry L. Demings.

Mayor Demings’ push for the sales tax referendum began in 2019.  In March 2020, it was put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to the pandemic, Orange County held over 200 community meetings and received nearly 11,000 survey responses and feedback on local transportation needs and priorities.

In January 2022, Mayor Demings re-engaged residents by creating six open houses and launching another online survey to ensure Orange County’s transportation priorities in 2022 aligned with the initial survey. A combined total of 19,000 residents responded to the survey and 270 community meetings were held to gather resident transportation needs and feedback.

Respondents overwhelmingly stated traffic congestion is a big concern and want a better mass transit system for the community, as well as improved traffic signal technology, and pedestrian and bike safety. The full results from the 2022 transportation survey can be found here.