Idaho budget writers reduce transportation fund

BOISE – Legislative budget writers on Monday gave the Idaho Transportation Department less money for fiscal 2008, as revenue from the federal government and state fees stagnated.

Lawmakers recommended a budget of $496 million, compared with $502 million in the current fiscal year, which ends June 30.

The appropriation would go to maintain thousands of miles of roads, 1,761 bridges and aviation infrastructure across Idaho’s 84,000 square miles.

Though there are more cars on Idaho’s roads – it’s America’s third-fastest growing state – the money coming in is stagnating, in part because gas-tax revenue has flattened as fuel efficiency has increased.

“Idaho is growing fast, but that growth is not paying for the increased demand for transportation,” said Pamela Lowe, director of the state highway agency.

“Both state and federal revenue to fund transportation is flat and inflation is eroding those funds even further.”

Efforts by the highway agency to boost revenue, including proposed new taxes and increased fees, have found little favor in this year’s Legislature.

The appropriation doesn’t include money from a proposed $264 million bond sale to finance projects in “Connecting Idaho,” the road-building project begun two years ago under former Gov. Dirk Kempthorne.

The bond sale, supported by Gov. Butch Otter, will likely be discussed Wednesday, budget writers said.

It remains the subject of negotiations among lawmakers who are concerned that $200 million from bonds sold last year isn’t being spent as quickly as anticipated. Some lawmakers also fear the process of choosing projects to be paid for by the bonds is guided by politics, rather than need.