Transportation Finance: Who Pays the Bills? 

States working to fund vital infrastructure projects, create jobs

 
Truck traffic, weather, age and inadequate investments have taken their toll on the Northeast region's vast transportation system.
 
But help could be on the way. 
  
More and more states are looking for creative ways to pay for infrastructure projects - including developing open-road tolling plans, establishing critical partnerships with private companies or introducing  legislation to permit state departments of transportation to utilize design build practices. 
 
Still, the road to repair is rocky.  Investments from all levels of government have not kept up with maintenance and capacity needs, the rate of inflation or escalating materials costs. The design life of many major structures is long past.  In addition, bottlenecks challenge the system and a boom in truck traffic, coupled with increased travel from home to work, have lead to a major need for increased infrastructure investment. 
 
State leaders, more than ever, are pushing Congress to include money for infrastructure improvements as an integral part of the economic stimulus proposals currently working their way through the House and Senate.  
 
In particular, states are working to ensure that the federal government's stimulus plan provides enough money to support their individual transportation systems, and that it will allow them to spend the much-needed money within the timeframes established.
 
"The state and federal governments must be partners in developing remedies that will lead to a speedy economic recovery," CSG President Governor M. Jodi Rell said in a press statement before her meeting with President-elect Obama as part of a National Governors' Association meeting in December.
 
The American Society of Civil Engineers has estimated that the country needs $1.6 trillion in federal, state and local funds over a five-year period to bring the nation's infrastructure up to speed.
 
A total of 43 states face budget shortfalls in 2009 and 2010, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.  Most have cut spending, dipped into financial reserves or raised revenues to balance their budgets.
 
Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island all face mid-year shortfalls, according to the center.
 
There are more than 5,000 "ready-to-go" transportation projects that have been identified by states, totaling $64 billion.
 
The incoming presidential administration seems more likely to increase funding for infrastructure projects, understanding that investment in infrastructure will create millions of jobs nationwide and will improve the nation's economy, mobility and quality of life.
 
On January 28, the House passed HR 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, a $825 billion package. The Senate is debating its own version of the House bill. Below is a chart showing proposed transportation funding for the Northeast states under the House bill: