The Washington State Senate Transportation Committee envisions spending a total of $9.8 billion over the next two years — an increase of $800,000 over the previous biennium — with much of the additional funding coming from new fees on vehicles and transportation  services.

The Senate budget, unveiled Tuesday morning in Olympia, differs from the House version in  that the latter defers fees until next year and relies instead on an increase in fuel taxes.

Gov. Christine Gregoire prefers the House version, but Committee Chair Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen (D-Camano Island), said there was no way the Senate would approve such a measure this year.

“The truth of the matter is, we didn’t have the votes,” she said. “We need to get the economy a little stronger before we ask for new revenue.”

Haugen added, “Within the next two years we absolutely need to go out and ask for a new gas tax. We don’t want to do that, but we’re really lacking a partner in the federal government, so we’re going to have to be more bold.”

With existing revenue sources essentially flat, the committee proposes three new revenue fee bills: Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 6150 (drivers’ license technologies and fees), Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 6455 (vehicle and dealer fees), and Second Substitute Senate Bill 5251 (electric vehicle fee).

At full biennial implementation, the fee increases would provide an estimated $80 million annually to support continued operation of the state’s transportation network.

The Washington State Senate's transportation bill would spend $800,000 more than in the previous biennium, with the difference being made up with new fees.

Haugen said the additional revenue would allow the state to “buy back some of the draconian cuts included in the governor’s budget.”

For the current biennium, the new revenue is allocated as follows:

• $130 million to fund a second 144‐car capacity vessel — with this funding, shipyards could commence work in December 2012 with an expected in‐service start in January 2015;
• $9 million for restoration of the Washington State Patrol’s auto theft program, to provide additional funding for compliance with the Federal Communications Commission’s “narrowbanding” requirements related to upgrading radio systems, and for general agency operations;
• $6 million is provided to the Department of Transportation to reduce the highway maintenance backlog and to meet urgent preservation needs on the state’s roadways;
• $3.5 million to support transit service — the funds are available to all public transit agencies in Washington and distributed based on current service hours, service mile and passenger trips provided;
• $6 million for the purchase of fuel for ferry operations;
• $3 million for the Transportation Improvement Board to meet urgent preservation and stormwater needs at the local level;
• $3 million for the County Road Administration Board for urgent preservation needs on
• county roads;
• $2 million for additional Safe Routes to Schools projects; and,
• $1 million for partnership projects managed by the Freight Mobility and Strategic Investment Board.

In addition, just over $27 million in new funding will be made available over the next
three years to advance design, preliminary engineering, or right‐of‐way acquisition for
the following state highway projects:

• $1 million for the Red Mountain interchange project;
• $2.5 million for the I‐5 Federal Way ‐ triangle vicinity improvements;
• $5 million for the Joint Base Lewis McChord Corridor;
• $4.5 million for the 124th Street and 148th interchanges on SR 520;
• $5 million for SR 509 Des Moines to Sea‐Tac corridor;
• $650 thousand for SR 9 Snohomish River Bridge widening project; and,
• $5 million for the North Spokane Corridor;
• $2 million for the Sharpes Corner intersection project;
• $850,000 for the I‐82 Union Gap project;
• $500,000 for the SR 3/304 interchange project; and,
• $200, 000 for the SR 28 East Wenatchee corridor improvements.

The bill allows for full appropriation of the remaining bond authority for the SR 520 Bridge Replacement program, which allows WSDOT and the Treasurer’s Office to better manage bond issuances and needed cash flow, ensuring access to more favorable financing terms through the federal Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) program.

This lower borrowing rate in combination with federal grant funds allows an additional $202 million to be allocated for construction of a new bridge over Portage Bay on the Westside connection of the SR-520 floating bridge.

The additional funding brings the funded project total to $2.6 billion.

The package also matches Oregon’s commitment of $85.2 million for preliminary engineering on the Columbia River Crossing.

However, the DOT is directed to spend funds only when there is 5 percent parity between the total value of the funding expended between the two states.

Lastly, the budget includes $15 million in federal TIGER grant funds to allow new work in the Joint Base Lewis McChord area.

Haugen said the budget was “much slimmer than we’d want it to be” given the current economic difficulties with which the state is grappling.

Nonetheless, she believes, “We took the resources available to us and invested them wisely.”

The full Senate Transportation Committee Budget can be found here.

This entry was posted on February 21, 2012 at 5:22 pm and is filed under Budget & Taxes, Economy, Elections, Environmental Issues, Politics, Property Rights, Unions & Labor. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.