Senators OK changes to financing for roads

AUSTIN -- Texas voters could approve a new way to finance highway construction and avert a "highway crisis" under legislation adopted Thursday by the Texas Senate. Lawmakers passed Senate Bill 4 and a joint resolution to create a way for the state to issue highway bonds that supplement Texas' current pay-as-you-go system, in which the state must have cash on hand before building more highways. Sen. Troy Fraser, R-Horseshoe Bay, was the lone dissenter in the chamber, saying he thinks the state should stay out of debt. If the measures get a nod from the Texas House and the governor's signature, the idea would have to get voters' approval to change the Texas Constitution.

The sponsor, Sen. Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, said the so-called Mobility Fund is a "flexible tool" to help address "tremendous" needs brought on by explosive population growth. "One need look no further than the miles of trucks backed up along the border, at the miles and miles of deteriorated farm to market roads, at the Los Angeles-style traffic congestion of our urban areas," Shapiro said.

She conceded that the state has not set aside money to issue the bonds, which she said would generate $10 in funding for every $1 the state puts in. "I am really optimistic," she said. "We're really talking about making transportation a priority. We're not talking about a large sum of money here. If you put $50 million into the fund for the biennium, you could have $500 million in construction and acquisition dollars." Shapiro has a bill pending in the Senate Finance Committee to seek $204 million in general revenue money for the bond program. "I'm not naive. I know there is not $204 million to do it this time, but any portion of that would be great," she said.

Additional note from texasfreeway.com:

The Texas Mobility Fund is "new" funding for TxDOT since my interpretation of the wording of the law is that contributions for the Fund will come from general revenues, not funds already dedicated to TxDOT.

DEDICATION OF REVENUE TO FUND.  Annually, out
 6-1     of the miscellaneous and general revenue of the state that is not
 6-2     dedicated for specific purposes by the constitution, an amount
 6-3     determined by the General Appropriations Act is dedicated to the
 6-4     fund.