New lawsuit accuses Sound Transit of spiking car tab fees since the ’90s

A second lawsuit has been filed against Sound Transit over car tab fees. While the first lawsuit targets the more-recently-passed ST3, this new class action lawsuit takes aim at the agency’s original proposal approved by voters in 1996.

‘Stunning admission’ during car tabs court case

The lawsuit was filed by seven plaintiffs on Sept. 27. It addresses the fee calculation from the 1990s, known as ST1. It also accuses the agency of over-inflating car values, resulting in higher car tab fees.

According to a press release from the attorneys representing the plaintiffs:

Plaintiffs sued Sound Transit again after the Department of Licensing revealed it has been breaking the law for nearly a decade in its calculation of car tabs. The new class action lawsuit seeks to prevent the DOL and Sound Transit from unconstitutionally hiking vehicle excise taxes under ST1, because the law authorizing higher tax rates (which Sound Transit has ignored for years) failed to follow requirements in the state constitution. The new suit could result in millions more refunds of illegally collected taxes.

The plaintiffs’ counsel Joel Ard argues that the transit agency has broken the law by using an outdated method to calculate car tab fees, one that the state moved away from in the ’90s and inflates the value of a vehicle. He further argues this was illegal and Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson has not defended the law equally by not holding Sound Transit accountable.

“Sound Transit and the department of Licensing are required to follow the law and the state constitution in calculating taxes,” Ard said. “The attorney general can’t pick and choose which state agencies and local governments get to break the law. Sound Transit can’t use a repealed law to calculate taxes, but instead has to give taxpayers fair notice of how much they will be charged.”

Another lawsuit currently before the Washington State Supreme Court accuses the agency of doing nearly the same thing to pay for ST3. Attorneys offered a settlement in that case that would force Sound Transit to re-calculate car tab fees and provide partial refunds, but that was rejected.

“Bob Ferguson and Sound Transit simply can’t defend the law with the same factual errors,” he said. “They are going to be forced in this case to admit the truth. The sad part is that the lawsuit and the cost to transit of hundreds of millions of dollars could have been avoided if they had accepted the settlement offer last week. We only hope they elect to resolve these cases before the rapidly approaching deadline for securing a billion and half dollars in federal transit funds that could otherwise go to another state.”

MyNorthwest’s Dyer Oxley contributed to this report.