As chair of the Senate Transportation Finance and Policy Committee, I have been working on a transportation budget bill that meets the needs of all corners of our state. On Monday, my colleagues and I unveiled our comprehensive transportation funding package. Our statewide transportation infrastructure needs attention; there has not been adequate funding for roads and bridges, especially in Greater Minnesota, for years. Here are the basics of the proposal:

Our plan would invest $1.3 billion over the next biennium – without raising taxes.

• $791 million in one-time funding will come from a mix of trunk highway bonds and federal grants.
• $400 million in funding will be drawn from a dedicated revenue stream that uses the sales tax on auto parts, vehicle leases, and vehicle rentals.
• $127 million in redirected funds from MnDOT’s Flex Highway Account
• $53 million through requiring a 15% efficiency at MnDOT

Over the next ten years, this amounts to an investment of $3.6 billion in new funding for transportation infrastructure statewide.
Light rail transit for the metropolitan area – which costs in the ballpark of $100 million per mile to construct, as well as an ongoing rider subsidy – is not included in the package. In addition, the state will not be on the hook to pay for half of the operating costs for future light rail lines; over the last biennium, Minnesotans paid more than $49 million in operating subsidies for light rail transit in Minneapolis and Saint Paul.

The bill is being vetted by the Senate Transportation Finance and Policy Committee this week and a hearing by the full Finance Committee will follow.

Sen. Scott Newman (R-Hutchinson) is chair of the Senate Transportation Finance and Policy Committee.