Gov. Charlie Baker has filed legislation to allocate $200 million in funds to Massachusetts cities and towns for local transportation infrastructure improvements.
Baker released $100 million in budgeted Chapter 90 transportation funds on his first day in office, which, if the new legislation passes, would make $300 million in funding available for the 2015 construction season. Chapter 90 reimburses cities and towns for costs incurred for eligible transportation projects.
The winter has been especially hard on the Bay State. Capital city Boston is within two inches of breaking the record for the snowiest winter, 107.6 inches in 1995-96.
Funding is issued by municipality and predetermined by a formula that includes factors such as population, road miles and employment. Cities and towns must submit receipts to their Massachusetts Department of Transportation local highway division district.
The districts in turn submit these receipts to MassDOT's fiscal department, which parses the reimbursements to cities and towns.
