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Public Transportation Benefit Area

Much like a fire or school district, the Public Transportation Benefit Area (PTBA) is a special taxing district established by Washington State for the purpose of providing public transportation. Our PTBA includes the cities of Airway Heights, Cheney, Medical Lake, Millwood, Liberty Lake, Spokane, and Spokane Valley, as well as portions of the unincorporated county surrounding those municipalities. Originally established in 1980, the PTBA was redrawn in 2006 to more closely reflect the urban nature of public transportation. The redrawn boundary (248 square miles) was based closely (but not entirely) on the Spokane County Urban Growth Area (UGA), urban growth reserve boundaries, and on current precinct and school district boundaries. The 2021 Spokane County PTBA population estimate is 459,007. View a Map of the PTBA.

Spokane Transit is the provider of public transportation services within the PTBA and is considered a municipal government much like any city, county, fire district or school district. It is governed by a Board of Directors composed of nine elected officials from the jurisdictions within the PTBA.
Funding for Spokane Transit’s services is largely provided by a local sales tax levied within the PTBA only. (By state law, public funding for transit agencies in Washington is through local sales and use tax of no more than 0.9%. Spokane Transit currently levies 0.8%. Voter approval is required before a tax can be levied.) 
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