WARREN — As Trumbull County commissioners wait to see a proposed service plan from the Western Reserve Transit Authority detailing all of the services the public transit service would offer if the county joins, they must also decide between two different routes to get there.

Commissioners heard Wednesday from Trumbull County Assistant Prosecutor Bill Danso, who presented information from his legal opinion, WRTA attorney John Perkins, Trumbull Transit Administrator Mike Salamone and WRTA Executive Director Dean Harris.

If commissioners adopt the route detailed in Ohio Revised Code 306.32, commissioners and other WRTA members would vote to enter WRTA and pass the relevant resolutions to do so, which would include implementation of a 0.25 percent sales tax. The tax would be implemented, unless, within 60 days, 10 percent of the county’s electorate sign a petition of referendum to force the decision to come to a vote. Then voters, by a simple majority, would decide if the sales tax to fund WRTA’s activities in the county should be approved. If the referendum doesn’t happen, or does and voters approve the tax, the tax would become effective immediately. If voters turn down the option, the “joinder” between the county and WRTA would not happen.

Or, the commissioners could opt to join through ORC 306.321. In this way, commissioners and WRTA vote to join together, and pass the relevant resolutions. Then, the matter would be presented directly to voters to approve or reject the 0.25 percent sales tax increase. If voters accept the sales tax, the joinder moves forward. If voters turn it down, the joinder does not happen.

Before making a decision, commissioners want to see a detailed service plan from Harris, who said the plan, specific to Trumbull County, should be ready in November, or December at the latest. Commissioners will be asked to make a decision before the end of the year, so there is time for the issue to be presented to county voters in the May election, if it does come to a vote. And, that timeline would allow the transition to occur without a disruption in service. A state-funded pilot program WRTA is running in Trumbull County runs out of funding in May.

WRTA collects a 0.25 percent sales tax in Mahoning County to fund operations there. The tax is permanent and does not have to be renewed. The tax brings in about $9 million in Mahoning County, and a 0.25 percent tax in Trumbull County is expected to generate $6 million.

Harris said the $6 million won’t just be spent on rides.

And, for every $1 a community spends on public transportation, $4 in economic development is generated, Harris said. The system would be bigger than the pilot program WRTA is running, and would meet or exceed all services provided in the county already, Harris said.

Harris said the system will be designed to ensure people can get to job centers, and lead to other investments in Trumbull County, including at least 40 new jobs, a transit hub in Warren, and increase the amount of ridership WRTA reports to the federal government, which could lead to more federal investment in the area. Harris said WRTA would look for grants to acquire electric-powered vehicles, and could design the transit hub in Warren to include electric vehicle charging stations, to encourage the region’s new interest in electric vehicles.

Regionalizing transit between the two counties wouldn’t only please the Federal Transit Administration and the Ohio Department of Transportation, but also residents of the counties who don’t care where the county line is when it comes to shopping, work and doctor appointments. Joining WRTA would reduce the restrictions on public rides between the counties that exist now, he said.

Harris said public transit helps people who aren’t working, or who don’t have ideal employment, find jobs or better jobs, even if they can’t afford their own vehicles.

“There is a lot of potential for economic development here,” Harris said.

The service plan being developed could be adjusted as job centers are created or opened, and will include plans for routes to Lordstown, where a battery cell plant and a warehouse distribution center are being built, Harris said.

Commissioner Frank Fuda said the county hasn’t had a transit system people could use reliably to get to work in the recent past, and that the other options for the county to provide transit services would only help seniors and other certain groups, but not the general population, because of funding issues.