Brown's California Transportation Proposal Criticized

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LOS ANGELES — California Gov. Jerry Brown's transportation funding proposal is too complex and does not include enough money to tackle the state's transportation needs, according to a report from the Legislative Analyst's Office.

The LAO, in its report Tuesday, said the governor's proposal is a step in the right direction, but told lawmakers they need to simplify the funding distribution model to allow for future growth in transportation needs.

The governor proposed a transportation package that would generate $4.2 billion over the next 10 years. It involves a $65 annual fee on vehicle registration, indexing the gas tax to inflation, using cap-and-trade greenhouse gas auction revenues and the early repayment of $700 million in transportation loans.

Lawmakers should also set up accountability measures and make sure funding is tackling the state's highest priorities, the LAO wrote.

"With the current and growing list of infrastructure needs, we need a stable source of ongoing funding to maintain and invest in transportation infrastructure," said Melissa Figueroa, spokeswoman for the California State Transportation Agency. "The governor's proposal ensures that revenues raised will go toward transportation infrastructure."

The LAO's report recommended that the California Transportation Commission administer any new programs and consider awarding funding through competitive grants.

"The revenues generated under the proposal would be distributed through a complex series of formulas in a manner that partially addresses a mix of transportation challenges," according to the LAO report.

For instance, the LAO's report said, "the governor's proposal would fully fund core highway rehabilitation needs in the State Highway Operation and Protection Program, but provide relatively little to address the state's significant highway maintenance needs."

The LAO report also recommended that the California Transportation Commission administer any new programs and consider awarding funding through competitive grants.

Sen. Jim Beall, D-San Jose, proposed a 12-cent hike in gas taxes phased in over three years, hiking the diesel excise tax and imposing a fee on zero emission vehicles, in Senate Bill 1. That measure cleared the California Senate Transportation Committee last week.

The LAO report did not mention the Senator's bill.

The governor's proposal would generate $4.2 billion over the next 10 years, but the LAO said that between $4.8 billion to $8.8 billion would be needed "annually" to fully fund the Highway Maintenance Program and SHOPP, a program aimed at rebuilding highways and bridges beyond repair, as well as providing a share of revenues for local streets and roads, under three proposed scenarios.

The LAO recommended legislators determine the level of shared funding for cities and counties and make the highway maintenance program its highest priority for the state's share of new funds, followed by SHOPP.

The Highway Maintenance Program currently has a backlog of $3 billion in deferred projects and SHOPP has a $9 billion backlog of projects.

The backlogs could be addressed with one-time or temporary funding sources, the report said, since ongoing funding needs will be less once backlogs of work are addressed.

The LAO recommended lawmakers consider using temporary taxes, general obligation bonds or redirect existing revenues as one-time sources of income to clear the backlog.

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