Arizona court to review ruling on car-rental tax surcharge

PHOENIX – The Arizona Supreme Court will review a lower court’s ruling that a car-rental tax surcharge imposed in Maricopa County to pay for building a football stadium and other sports and recreational facilities is legal.

The high court announced Tuesday that it would review the Court of Appeals’ March ruling that a constitutional provision on use of transportation money wasn’t intended to cover every tax or fee related in any way to vehicles.

Car-rental companies’ attorneys had argued that the constitutional provision meant the surcharge revenue can be used only to build and maintain roads.

Court of Appeals Judge Diane Johnsen wrote that the provision is triggered by a vehicle’s operation on a public roadway.

Attorney Shawn Aiken responded by saying the tax provision relates to the operation of a car.