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State Representative Gene Pelowski Jr.
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-8637
For more information contact: Michael Howard 651-296-8873
Column/LTE
WIDE COALITION OF SUPPORT FOR BALANCED TRANSPORTATION BILL
Last week in the Minnesota House and Senate, we passed an important comprehensive transportation funding package. It is sound public policy representing months of bipartisan discussion and compromise. The result is a balanced bill that benefits every county in the state, carefully weighing the needs transportation needs of both rural and metro areas.
The need for a comprehensive transportation package has been clearly evident for some time now, and the problem will only get larger if we do not act. MnDOT cannot continue maintaining our roads and bridges because the road maintenance needs are outpacing our funding capacity to fix them. In total, MnDOT estimates that we need $2.4 billion per year in new resources to meet our needs. Due to underfunding, we have relied heavily on borrowing in recent years, but the debt is piling up. In the last five years our debt for transportation has increased over 650%. A recent report by the nonpartisan Legislative Auditor office confirmed that the state of our road maintenance is grim and our borrowing is unsustainable.
In 2005, a Winona County engineer e-mailed me with some shocking news. He told me that the county was so short on money for highways that it would have to start turning paved roads back into gravel if some new funding wasn’t found. Since then, the legislature hasn’t provided new funding for roads for Winona County. However, due to the transportation bill we have passed, there will be no need to turn any of our paved highways into gravel.
Over the next ten years, Winona County will receive almost $13.7 million dollars for roads and bridges, an average annual increase of 16% and over three times what is currently allocated. Houston County will receive $9.7 million dollars over the next ten years, a 15% annual increase and nearly three times what is currently allocated. In addition, $40 million will be spent to fix the Highway 43 Mississippi River Bridge in Winona by 2010.
By adequately addressing local funding for our roads and bridges we will reduce the property tax burden for homeowners in Winona and Houston County who have seen their property taxes increase significantly in the last few years. Property taxes are now the single largest funding source for our roads and bridges in Minnesota, with over $800 million in property tax dollars funding local road repair and projects last year. This bill will lessen the property tax burden being carried by local home and business owners by providing increased state resources to counties and cities.
Along with making the needed investment into our state's roads and bridges, this bill can help stimulate the Minnesota economy. In the last six months, we have lost 23,000 jobs in Minnesota, with the construction sector being hit the hardest. This legislation will create an estimated 33,000 jobs per year over the next five years, many of them in our area.
The funding approach taken in this legislation is fiscally responsible, with an emphasis on both short and long-term planning. Our transportation bill will be funded with a nickel-per-gallon gas tax increase to be phased in by mid-September. In addition, 2 ½ additional cents will be raised in coming years to repay state borrowing. This plan responsibly will "pay-as-we-go" in order to address our transportation needs for the long-term without saddling our children and grandchildren with billions in debt.
For some time a consensus has agreed the legislature must do something on transportation. Recognizing that need, a wide coalition of hundreds local organizations, nearly every labor organization, and the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, all have come out in support of this bill. Given our transportation needs and what Minnesotans stands to benefit, the breadth of support does not surprise me.
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News Items
- REP. GENE PELOWSKI: MINNESOTA STATUTE 12A IMPROVES STATE DISASTER RECOVERY PROCESS AND DISASTER RELIEF PACKAGE - (Posted: 2012-08-24 00:00:00)
- REP. GENE PELOWSKI AND SEN. JEREMY MILLER SUPPORT TWO-BRIDGE PROPOSAL - (Posted: 2012-08-23 00:00:00)
- REP. GENE PELOWSKI: STATE DISASTER RECOVERY PACKAGE SHOULD FOLLOW PROCESS OUTLINED IN 12A AND INCLUDE PUBLIC INPUT - (Posted: 2012-08-16 00:00:00)
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