Joint Transportation Appropriations Meeting 2.9.11
Today the members of the Joint Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee heard a presentation by the Fiscal Research Division staff entitled, “Transportation Primer.” I would summarize the meeting by saying staff laid out many options for the Subcommittee to consider when thinking about how to be more effective and effective with our transportation dollars. Items laid on the table for consideration included expanding the role counties and cities play in maintaining roads, reducing or reshuffling the number or order of construction of the urban loops, reconsidering the list of projects to be built on the Intrastate System, raising the diesel fuel tax rate, capturing a user fee from more efficient vehicles, increased tolling, corporate sponsorships, expanded public private partnerships, eliminating the exemptions in the Highway Use Tax, indexing fees for inflation, reprogramming current funds for other purposes, eliminating transfers of transportation funds to other State agencies, privatizing DOT functions, changing highway divisions/split up highway divisions, and others.
After the presentation Rep. Rapp asked the Subcommittee leadership what their thoughts were on transferring secondary roads to the counties. The chairs indicated they had not discussed the issue yet but it would be a topic for consideration in the long term.
The Subcommittee will continue with presentations by agencies through next week and I will continue to update you daily. Please let me know if you have any questions.
Julie
