Miami Transit Surtax Revenue Plummets 14% in April

Miami-Dade County's primary funding mechanism for mass transit expansion is experiencing a sharp downturn, with April 2026 collections falling nearly 14% below the same month in 2025, according to reports delivered to the Citizens' Independent Transportation Trust.

The decline marks a continuation of troubling trends for the quarter-century-old sales surtax. Collections decreased 8.54% in the first quarter of 2026 and dropped 7.36% in the final quarter of 2025. April receipts totaled $26.4 million, down $4.2 million from April 2025.

Javier Betancourt, executive director of the trust that oversees surtax spending, attributed the primary cause to last year's state-level elimination of sales tax on office rents. The trust now faces difficult decisions about scaling back or delaying transit projects that depend on consistent revenue streams.

"It's going to be a challenging year with some double-digit decreases in our sales tax," Betancourt told the trust. He emphasized the need for conservative financial planning given the uncertain economic environment.

Despite the revenue challenges, the trust approved several infrastructure investments. The board authorized an additional $1.9 million to oversee design modifications connecting the South Dade Bus Rapid Service to the Dadeland South Metrorail Station. The supplemental funding brings total oversight costs to $8.8 million for the project, which was initially budgeted at $66.8 million. The design changes include previously unforeseen bus chargers at the station to support the new rapid transit service from Florida City.

The trust also approved $480,000 in surtax funds for the Department of Transportation and Public Works to replace 17 aging air conditioning units at the Coral Way Bus Facility located at 2775 SW 74th Ave. Officials reported that all units have exceeded their expected service life and are experiencing frequent breakdowns. Here and Now Contractors Co. will handle the replacement work.

Meanwhile, infrastructure improvements continue in Miami Beach, where Florida Engineering & Development Corps. completed an 11-month enhancement project for the Florida Department of Transportation. The work upgraded Collins Avenue between 44th and 47th streets, Indian Creek Drive from 41st to 44th streets, and the 41st Street bridge over Indian Creek Waterway. Improvements included adding a second right turn lane from southbound Indian Creek Drive to westbound 41st Street.

The sales surtax revenue decline presents long-term implications for Miami-Dade's transit ambitions, potentially slowing planned expansions of bus rapid transit corridors and rail connections that county leaders have promoted as essential to accommodating the region's population growth and reducing traffic congestion.