Sterling, there is a huge tax extension issue you are not yet including: the option of building rail at street level, from Middle Street into the urban core.  It would be less expensive, so no tax extension is needed. The FTA already listed this as a viable option, and 38 cities across the nation (and hundreds around the world) have excellent street-level light rail. In our case: cheaper to build, more extensive routes, easier to board, higher ridership, lower maintenance costs, no elevated blight, faster to construct, lanes already available, could reach UH and Waikiki in future affordable extensions.  See http://www.salvagetherail.org/ for details.  This is  being proposed now to the legislature by a group of local architects and concerned citizens, led by Hawaii's Thousand Friends and Outdoor Circle.  This would transform rail from an ugly, elevated dead-end at our tourist shopping mall into a useful system serving the entire city,  without need for a regressive tax hike.