Senator John Jasinski (R-Faribault) has sent a letter to the commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Transportation, Charlie Zelle expressing his concern about a potential policy change that would shift millions of Corridors of Commerce dollars away from Greater Minnesota.
Traditionally, Corridors of Commerce has maintained an even 50-50 funding balance between projects in the metropolitan area and projects in Greater Minnesota. At several recent public comment meetings with local stakeholders, there has been a discussion of shifting the split to dedicate a higher percentage of funding to metro projects.
“When I pushed to add more money to the Corridors of Commerce program, my intention was that the funding would be used equally for projects across the state,” said Sen. Jasinski. “I was so committed to this that I added clarifying language that would maintain a regional balance. The idea that MnDOT is thinking about giving more money to the metro at the expense of Greater Minnesota is deeply troubling.”
“Passing a comprehensive transportation bill was my top priority during my first year in the Senate,” continued Sen. Jasinski. “I am proud we accomplished the largest investment in roads and bridges in nearly a decade, including a significant funding boost for Corridors of Commerce. I hope MnDOT will not make any changes to the 50-50 regional split of Corridors of Commerce funding, but if they decide to undo years of historical precedent, then we will examine possible legislative solutions to keep a fair balance in place.”
Below is the full letter from Sen. Jasinski to Commissioner Zelle:
December 19, 2017
Charles A. Zelle
Commissioner
Minnesota Department of Transportation
395 John Ireland Boulevard
Saint Paul, MN 55155
Commissioner Zelle,
During the 2017 Session, in our Transportation Omnibus bill that was signed into law, one of my priorities as the Vice Chair of the committee was to ensure equity in road spending.
When I proposed legislation to add more funding to the Corridors of Commerce program, my intention was that the funding would utilized all across Minnesota, not just the Metro. Traditionally, the funding for the Corridors of Commerce program has been a 50-50 split between the Metro and Greater Minnesota. This is why I pushed to add language to maintain the traditional regional balance in the Corridors of Commerce program (Minnesota Statute 161.088, Subd. 5, (8)).
I have been recently made aware of a discussion during the public comment period evaluating the Corridors of Commerce project selection criterion that our legislative intent of maintaining the 50-50 split between the Metro and Greater Minnesota may be changed to give more funding to the Metro. I am in opposition to changing the traditional 50-50 split, and I believe any potential move away from it would go directly against our legislative intent of maintaining regional balance.
I am requesting that my office receives necessary updates on this situation moving forward.
Sincerely,
Senator John R. Jasinski