If voters agree to the hike, it would bring Utah's most populous county more than a billion dollars for new roads and rail.

But before endorsing the ballot switch in a 7-0 vote Thursday, some council members suggested the so-called transportation solution leaves more questions than answers.

For instance: Would one or more TRAX extensions be sacrificed to fund commuter rail to Utah County? Could the county use its corridor-preservation cash for transit and roads? Would the list of projects be selected before voters hit the polls? And how, possibly, could the county prevent those priorities from being politicized?

"I'm not going to make a commitment to be a cheerleader for this from this day forward, because I just don't know," Councilwoman Jenny Wilson said.

West Valley City Mayor Dennis Nordfelt also has implored lawmakers to outline specific projects, arguing it is not fair to send voters to the polls blind.

One sticking point: Would the four TRAX routes - West Valley City, West Jordan-South Jordan, Draper and Salt Lake City International Airport - still be built by 2014? Insiders say the measure would divert too much money to the Mountain View Corridor and commuter rail, leaving Draper as the odd train out.

There is some fear among Salt Lake City leaders the airport line could fall off the priority list, partly because of Mayor Rocky Anderson's poor relationship with other mayors, even though the airport is the state's third largest generator of traffic,.

"There are more projects than there is money. Of course we're concerned," said Council Chairman Dave Buhler after a council meeting Thursday night. "Judged on the merits, it should be No. 1."

County Councilman Randy Horiuchi also complained that county residents could get taxed twice for the same road, noting the County Council recently passed a $10 vehicle registration hike for the Mountain View Corridor.

"I am very fearful that roads will be too high a portion . . . and light rail won't be sufficiently supported," agreed Councilman Joe Hatch.

Indeed, the ballot measure - approved Tuesday by the Legislature - mandates the county cough up 25 percent of the sales tax for "corridor preservation." After Thursday's council vote, attorneys huddling around the table still were stumped over where that cash could be spent.

But Bruce Jones, an attorney for Utah Transit Authority, said he suspects "at least three and possibly four of the [TRAX] lines will come out high on the list," which has yet to be decided.

In August, the council agreed to put an $895 million property tax referendum on the ballot strictly for the four TRAX spurs. The Legislature's alternative would boost sales taxes a quarter cent and be available for transportation improvements statewide.

In Thursday's special meeting, Millcreek Township resident Arne Hultquist alleged the Legislature had caved to big business.

"It is unfortunate that a great idea has been hijacked by commercial interests," he said. "I do not understand why I have to pay for a road to a subdivision I don't need."

Still, transportation executives worried the county's billion-dollar sales tax bill nearly was blown off course a day before this week's special session.

On Monday, Hatch trashed the terms, calling a TRAX snub House Speaker Greg Curtis' way of "screwing the county." Hatch also pledged to scuttle the bill by siphoning support in Democratic-leaning Salt Lake City.

Salt Lake Chamber President Lane Beattie, who backs the sales-tax approach, then fretted that years of long-range transit planning could hit a wall.

"If Joe Hatch shows up tomorrow at 9, this could be dead by 11," a panicked Beattie said Monday evening.

Instead, the outspoken councilman smoothed things over Tuesday morning with Curtis.

"He thought I was going to go out and organize a jihad against it," Hatch said later. "That's not going to happen."

Down the hall, Horiuchi and County Councilman Michael Jensen sat on the hot seat, while state lawmakers railed against Hatch's "rhetoric" and complained the subject had been politicized. They later debated how much autonomy to give the county in choosing transportation projects, cognizant that the council's one-seat GOP edge could flip in the November election.

During a half-hour of fence-mending, Horiuchi took the bullets for Hatch, joking later he had been "eviscerated" and left half his hide on the Capitol Hill seat.

djensen@sltrib.com

The Salt Lake County Council of Governments, which includes city and county leaders, will pick funding priorities - from TRAX extensions to road upgrades - if voters OK the sales-tax hike. A legislative panel then would have to OK the project list.