State officials may be facing a highway construction work stoppage this fall if federal funds that pay for most of Vermont’s transportation projects continue to dry up – which they will do if Congress fails to act by the end of the month.
While most members of Congress enjoyed a break this week, state leadership is scrambling to line up the temporary funding sources that will be needed in the event that Washington doesn’t reauthorize the surface transportation bill and the funding for the Highway Trust Fund dries up.
Sue Minter, secretary of the state’s Agency of Transportation, said VTrans has projects under construction now and bills, normally reimbursed by the federal government, have to be paid.
“In the middle of our construction season, we are billing for all the projects that are out on the street … we are billing at about $7 million a week,” Minter said.
In the “very unlikely” event of a shutdown, the state of Vermont could afford to use cash reserves for up to eight weeks, Minter said, but the work hours of state officials who should be doing other things is where real losses are being seen.
“It’s very unlikely it will happen at all. But, we’re working jointly just to deal with this,” she explained during a phone call she made from the state treasurer’s office, moments after a contingency planning meeting. “It’s the treasurer’s office, it’s VTrans, it’s finance and management, and also the Joint Fiscal Office. We’re all kind of convening to see if we can understand what our risks are and how we are going to address them if, in fact, Congress does not act.”
“It is frustrating to be spending so much of our time dealing with the dysfunction of Washington, D.C. It’s dealing with these constant fire drills,” Minter said.
State Treasurer Beth Pearce says the state has healthy reserves. “We were very prudent in our cash management, so we’re able to do this,” Pearce said.
Other states are pulling projects, Minter said, because they don’t have the cash flow and credit rating to continue road construction in the middle of the busy summer season.
Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., is hustling to gain support on a tactic that he hopes will put an end to the funding shortfalls that continue to plague the nation’s transportation infrastructure needs.
If Congress fails to reauthorize the surface transportation bill, the ensuing shutdown of the Federal Highway Administration means reimbursements for any projects would disappear.
In addition, the Highway Trust Fund, which is funded by dwindling gas tax revenues, is insolvent and no longer raises enough money to meet the nation’s road infrastructure maintenance obligations.
On June 24, a draft bill emerged from the Senate Environment and Public Works committee, fixing issues with the previous bill and providing a six-year, $278 billion plan providing for the nation’s highway infrastructure. The draft bill, called DRIVE Act, for “Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy” is currently in the Senate Finance Committee.
Last Thursday, committee chair Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, opened the discussion by pointing to ways states could look at financing their own highway projects.
“Because of the large capital costs associated with infrastructure, financing alternatives can give states more flexibility in producing the capital they need to build projects faster,” he said in a statement. He also pointed to private-public partnerships as a potential future source of funds for state highways and cited the idea as having “bipartisan support.”
Vermont relies on the feds for at least 60 percent of its highway construction funding. For interstate projects, like the bridge work at Waterbury on I-89, it sources about 90 percent of the funds, officials have said.
In an effort to spur activity on the Hill, Welch has proposed a fix that could garner attention, and possibly action.
In a June 17 letter to House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., he lists the numerous bills that have entered the House proposing funding for transportation. Naming H.R. 1846, H.R. 680 and H.R. 625, he notes that all of them have languished.
“We all agree that America urgently needs a sustainably funded, long term surface transportation bill. … Yet the House has not been given the opportunity to vote on any of them,” he writes.
He asks for a bill showdown, using a “Queen of the Hill” voting method that at one time was rarely used. (In March, the system was dusted off to help the GOP get through an impasse and pass a budget blueprint.)
Under the rule, all proposals are put forth for vote, and the one with the most votes is considered passed.
“We urge you to allow a vote on these proposals, and any alternatives that you choose,” wrote Welch. “This approach will ensure that the will of the House is adopted and predictability and certainty in our transportation program is restored.”
A spokesperson for Welch said the letter hadn’t been formally responded to, but that his office expected something to happen next week when Congress reconvenes.
“We expect there to be more action and to get more feedback now that Congress is coming back in session next week, and because the Highway Trust Fund is running out of funds this month,” said Kirsten Hartman, a spokeswoman for Welch. “We expect more action and discussions,” about the fund, she said.
