Idaho Senate spikes transportation funding plan

BOISE, Idaho – The Idaho Senate on Wednesday killed a roughly $320 million transportation funding plan, effectively squashing hope of passing any significant funding proposal to repair the state’s crumbling roads and bridges before the end of the session.

Senate members have been considering various transportation proposals for the past few weeks with varying degrees of support. Ultimately, lawmakers said they not back a plan that primarily used bonds to pay for new road projects and repay it with future federal highway payments.

“This time we’re seeking to borrow the money, money not necessarily for maintenance but for new construction. It’s for more lane miles to maintain when we can’t maintain the miles we have now,” said Sen. Jim Guthrie, R-McCammon.“It’s the path of least resistance, but not necessarily the best path and certainly not the only path.”

The plan also would have also replaced the fuel tax funding Idaho State Police currently receives with one percent of the state’s general funds. This would have freed up an additional $17 million for roads and bridges without cutting ISP’s budget.

Senate President Pro Tem Brent Hill says the Senate’s 15-20 vote signaled that lawmakers will likely only allocate a small amount of new transportation funding before adjourning for the year.

However, the Senate’s decision surprised House members and infuriated representatives from Canyon County – a region that has been plagued with congested traffic corridors and raised public safety concerns with a rise in vehicle accidents.

The House and Senate had been negotiating a transportation deal for weeks with the understanding SB1188 would pass, said House Assistant Majority Leader Brent Crane. Those compromise talks must now start over with limited time in the session and even fewer pieces of legislation the House can use as leverage to force the Senate’s hand.

“We do not want to adjourn without a transportation bill,” said Rep. Robert Anderst, R-Nampa, told reporters with nine other Canyon County delegates. “We want to be abundantly clear we’re still here and we’re still trying to find a way.”

Meanwhile, Hill said the Legislature could extend allowing leftover state general funds to be funneled to transportation funds for an additional five years.

This extension was included in the proposal killed Wednesday. It would have to make it out of both of the Senate and House separately before adjournment if it were to be implemented.

Idaho has been diverting a portion of the state’s excess funds to state roads and bridges since 2015, but that system is set to expire this year. A surplus eliminator does not create a permanent or significant source of transportation funds because there is no guarantee that the state will have a budget surplus at the end of the fiscal year.

Idaho uses fuels taxes, registration fees and other sources to pay for its state and local roads and bridges. However, the Republican-controlled Statehouse has blocked attempts to raise the gas tax and other fees. This has created a system with not enough revenue to help cover the costs of maintenance and construction, leaving the state with an annual $262 million transportation deficit.

So far, the Senate has killed not only the sweeping transportation funding plan this year, but also the session’s other biggest proposals on faith-healing and health care.