JEFFERSON CITY, MO. — While Congress remains stalled on a long-term plan for funding highways, state lawmakers and governors aren’t waiting.
Nearly one-third of the states have approved measures this year that could collectively raise billions of dollars through higher fuel taxes, vehicle fees and bonds to repair old bridges and roads and relieve traffic congestion, according to an analysis by The Associated Press.
The surge of activity means at least half of the states — from coast to coast, in Republican and Democratic areas — now have passed transportation funding measures since 2013.
And the movement may not be done.
Tennessee’s governor is in the midst of a 15-city tour highlighting the state’s transportation needs. North Carolina lawmakers are debating a road-bonding proposal. And legislators are returning to work this week in California and Michigan with transportation funding on the agenda.
“I don’t know of a state that’s not having the conversation” about raising revenue for transportation, said Iowa Transportation Director Paul Trombino III, who is vice president of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials and whose home state recently raised fuel taxes by 10 cents a gallon.
The focus on transportation funding comes as state officials are becoming frustrated by federal inaction in helping to repair roads and bridges described as crumbling, aging and unsafe.
About 20 percent of the nation’s 900,000 miles of interstates and major roads need resurfacing or reconstruction, according to one analysis of federal data. A quarter of the 600,000 bridges are considered structurally deficient or functionally obsolete. That doesn’t necessarily mean they are about to fall; it means they are showing worrisome problems or are no longer adequate for today’s traffic.
“There’s a lot of voices that say, ‘Let’s push this off,’ ” said Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam, whose call for transportation funding has been opposed by fellow Republicans. “But the need is not going to go away. We’re going to have to do something to address this.”
In many states, the new money is going primarily toward repairing infrastructure, although some projects — such as a new four-lane U.S. 20 across Iowa — are designed to ease congestion so commerce can flow more freely.
Congress has yet to agree on long-term funding to supplement the states’ efforts. Instead, it recently passed its 34th short-term extension of the nation’s transportation program since 2009, ensuring only that states will continue to receive federal highway funding through Oct. 29.
Federal dollars, on average, cover about half of a state’s capital expenditures for roads and bridges, according to the American Road & Transportation Builders Association. But the money available from the Federal Highway Trust Fund declined 3.5 percent during the five-year period ending in 2013, the latest year for which numbers are available, because of improved fuel economy and other factors. The fund receives money from federal taxes on gasoline and diesel.
Regardless of what Congress ultimately does, some state officials say more taxpayer money will be required to update their aging infrastructure for the modern economy.
Transportation economist George Hoffer of the University of Richmond in Virginia said many politicians find it more palatable to raise fuel taxes because “it’s considered equitable — the more you use, the more you pay.”
And because fuel prices fluctuate, it’s harder to notice the added tax.
