AFSCME Council 5 is supporting legislation to stop the outsourcing
of transportation work by requiring the commissioner of transportation
to compare the costs of public and private services before entering
into privatization contracts.
Read the Senate bill SF 2657 and House bill HF 3221
Union leaders testified
in support of SF 2657 before the Senate Transportation Committee
on March 28, 2006. Read their testimony:
Darren
Trast’s
Testimony
Bart Andersen’s Testimony
Keep the free in freeways
Say no to corporate control of highways
Dedicate a stable source of transportation funding
Governor Pawlenty guaranteed
gridlock when he vetoed a bipartisan plan to raise the gas tax by
10 cents. This chronic failure to
fund transportation is costing the average Minnesota commuter $1,000
a year in wasted time and fuel. Meanwhile, hazardous roads are
costing lives.
Now the state is looking
to privatization as a future source of highway funding. And toll roads have transportation officials seeing
dollar signs. Don’t be fooled by this risky business. What
Minnesota commuters need is a stable source of transportation funding.
Corporate control of highways
is not the way to go. Just as
President Bush pushes a plan to turn American ports over to the United
Arab Emirates, some state officials are pushing corporate control of
our highways. Just as Minnesotans lash out against government’s
power to take land for private development, officials in some states
are pushing eminent domain for corporate toll roads.
Minnesota’s
Department of Transportation is broke
-
MnDOT is $300 million
short of what it needs to complete the next three years of metro
road projects.
-
Roads in Greater Minnesota
get shortchanged. For example,
Minnesota’s entire $100 million increase in federal highway
money will go toward cost overruns on metro projects.
-
MnDOT is robbing Peter
to pay Paul. To keep reconstruction
on schedule for the Crosstown Commons (Hwy. 62 & Interstate 35W),
funding has been diverted from five local projects designed to ease
traffic congestion.
The Problem:
-
The federal government collects 18.4 cents on each gallon of gas
sold at the pump for the Highway Trust Fund.
-
Minnesota relies on this fund for highway construction and road
maintenance.
-
As cars have become
more fuel-efficient, gas tax revenues haven’t
kept pace with the rising cost of new roads.
-
Materials and labor for road construction rose 35% from 1998 to
2005, while the consumer price index rose 19.8% (Source: American
Road and Transportation Builders Association).
Bad Choices:
-
States are looking to privatization as
a future source of highway funding.
-
Toll roads have state transportation officials seeing dollar
signs.
The Pawlenty Plan:
-
Starve revenue for road maintenance and postpone highway construction.
-
Then – during this election year – claim
that we can fix roads without raising taxes.
-
Borrow $2.5 billion for road projects over the next 4 years.
-
Waste $1.34 billion paying interest on those 20-year bonds.
-
Force our grandkids to pay for the roads we use today.
The Solution:
-
Build and repair roads instead of paying interest.
-
Dedicate all proceeds
from motor vehicle sales taxes to transportation.
Voters
will be asked to approve this constitutional amendment in November.
If
the amendment passes, it’s only a 15% down payment on our
transportation problem.
-
Close the investment
gap with a gas tax.
Prices
at the pump rise 10 cents between breakfast and lunch.
People who benefit from our transportation system can pay a little
more to make it better.
Read more:
The Road to Perdition
By Britt Robson, City Pages – February 22, 2006
State feels bumps in the budget for roads
By Laurie Blake, Star Tribune – February 20, 2006
Road funding takes a toll on states
By Eric Kelderman, Stateline.org – February 17, 2006
Save your quarters: States build more toll roads
By Kathleen Murphy, Stateline.org – January 10, 2006
