The economic storm clouds roiling above our nation just may contain a silver lining after all, and Colorado’s lawmakers should be ready to take full advantage.
Rarely is there enough political will to free up money for the kinds of road-and-bridge projects that communities almost continuously need but never can seem to pay for. So President-elect Barack Obama’s plan to stimulate the economy by creating and funding the largest public-works program in the country’s history could be a real gift.
Colorado’s governor and state legislature should present him not only a plan for Colorado’s infrastructure projects, but also details of some new financing mechanism or revenue stream that shows Colorado is willing to invest in itself, too.
Gov. Bill Ritter sent a wish list to Obama on Wednesday detailing 157 ready-to-go projects that simply need the cash to get started. These are what the governor, and seemingly every other politician these days, is calling “shovels in the ground” projects that could be launched in 180 days or less. (Quick aside, the “shovels in the ground” thing is already a cliche.)
Obama’s infrastructure plan makes good sense, but each project should be viable in both creating jobs and benefitting communities for the long term.
Ritter’s list of 157 projects would cost $1.4 billion and focus almost entirely on highway funding, which clearly is needed in Colorado.
Obama’s plans and Ritter’s list come as our state legislature is preparing to convene Jan. 7 for a session that must take up the issue of expanded transportation funding after last year’s opportunity to do so collapsed. Already lawmakers are looking at ways to increase state funding, and arguing over whether to do so at the legislative level or at the ballot box next November. Or both. Legislative fixes mentioned include tolling and bonding.
Now is the time for real bipartisan leadership on this issue that is so vital to our economy.
The first order of business should be fleshing out the list of projects Ritter has sent to Obama with real- world details. A bipartisan accord on new money for transportation would stress the seriousness of the projects for our state.
Ritter and others have asked the president-elect to waive requirements that any of the stimulus money from federal coffers be matched by state monies. Requiring a local match would greatly reduce or even cancel the stimulus package’s impact, as so many states have been knocked into profound deficits after the market meltdown.
But even with the waiver, Colorado would be in stronger shape if the state’s plan to build new roads had “we’re-serious money” attached to it.
Colorado lawmakers need to act now.
