1/17/2006
Forum on Transportation Investment delivers report to Idaho Transportation Board
BOISE - Recommendations by a citizen's forum focused on how to finance Idaho's growing transportation needs were accepted by the Idaho Transportation Board today at its meeting in Boise.
The Forum on Transportation Investment examined Idaho's growing transportation needs and available options for financing and funding Idaho's transportation system during eight meetings spanning 17 months.
The report includes 12 conclusions and 14 recommendations to help shape future investments in the Idaho surface transportation system. Among immediate considerations are actions necessary to increase stagnated revenues to the Highway Distribution Account: the funding source for 57 percent of state transportation funding, 38 percent of local highway jurisdiction funding and 5 percent of state police funding.
Chaired by former state representative Jim Kempton, the Forum held its final meeting on Jan. 5 to finalize its report.
The Forum was composed of individuals representing diverse interests and backgrounds, including public agencies, transportation service providers, public transportation providers, stakeholders and elected officials. Virtually every stakeholder interest in Idaho surface transportation had a voice on the Forum through one or more members.
Created by the Idaho Transportation Board, the Forum started work in September 2004, following completion of the states 30-year transportation visioning process, a process that began with the 2003 survey and report Idaho's Transportation Future: "Getting There Together."
The Forum's charter noted that, in considering recommendations for shaping future investment in the Idaho surface transportation system, traditional funding, combined with new innovative financing mechanisms, would need to be integrated with efficient and responsive planning to meet the transportation expectations of a growing population.
In accepting the Forum's report, the Idaho Transportation Board authorized release of the report to elected officials, legislators and the general public.
The 12 conclusions are:
1. Continued explosive growth - Idaho's population will grow by 56 percent between 2000 and 2030 - twice the national average.
2. Transportation is essential to the economy - Transportation is the common denominator that ties everything together.
3. All levels of government are involved - Almost 300 jurisdictions have some role in the state's transportation network.
4. Funding shortfall needs immediate resolution - In 1995, the Idaho Highway Needs Assessment Study Update noted a backlog for all jurisdictions from 1994 through 2000 of $8.65 billion. Available revenue for that same period measured less than half of that amount.
5. Federal funding is not sufficient - Idaho must rely on its own solutions to transportation funding challenges and not have unrealistic expectations for a federal solution.
6. Thirty-year needs exceed $20 billion - The Forum queried all levels of transportation jurisdictions. The report identified a total of more than $20 billion.
7. The expected shortfall is greater than $200 million per year - While the recently established GARVEE bonding program will accelerate construction of some projects statewide, GARVEE does not address the substantial annual funding shortfall that is predicted for the next three decades.
8. Public transportation should be addressed - Idaho remains one of six states without a dedicated state revenue stream to support transit projects.
9. Revenue structure will not meet needs - The Forum found that no single revenue stream could be counted on to adequately address both state and local needs. In fact, the Forum's analysis found that multiple sources would be necessary to even come close to meeting funding requirements.
10. Freight movement is important - Freight growth across the nation will double in the next 20 years, with 88 percent of all commerce in commodities involving truck transportation on our highways.
11. Funding challenges require innovative solutions - The Forum concluded that Idaho's leaders should look beyond the obvious and determine if there are innovative solutions that could contribute to transportation funding.
12. Idaho must prepare for transition to alternative fuels - The advent of hybrid-fueled vehicles, as well as other new technologies, will diminish the taxes collected on fossil fuels.
"Forum conclusions indicate a growing gap between demand and revenue," Kempton observed. "Solutions are needed now. Ignoring transportation investment problems poorly situates the state for dealing with a growing population and unprecedented construction costs that are occurring now, and that will only increase over the next decade."
The 14 recommendations the Forum derived from the conclusions covered a range of policy and funding options.
Those recommendations are included under three general categories:
1. New and revised policies that will facilitate future improvement strategies.
2. Policy/revenue options that will support diverse transportation needs.
3. Revenue actions that include a variety of methods to increase revenue.
More information about the Forum's process can be found on the Idaho Transportation Department Web site (www.itd.idaho.gov). The final report will be posted on the Web site after the transportation board meeting.
Forum on Transportation Investment Recommendations
The following recommendations are divided into three categories: Policy, Policy/Revenue and Revenue depending on their nature and application.
POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS
Idaho should:
P-1 Integrate land use and transportation planning at all levels-state/regional/local.
P-2 Provide opportunities for user-fee based systems (toll roads/high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes, congestion pricing, etc.).
P-3 Promote partnership opportunities (private/public, public/public, etc.) and remove legal barriers whenever possible.
P-4 Pursue future revenue opportunities and sources by transitioning from traditional revenue generating sources (fuel tax/other) to other methodologies (BTU tax, VMT tax, etc.).
P-5 Update the analytic Idaho Highway Needs Assessment Study approximately every 10 years.
POLICY/REVENUE RECOMMENDATIONS
Idaho should:
P/R-1 Acknowledge that Public Transportation should be an integral part of Idaho's transportation system by dedicating revenue mechanisms to address public transportation issues.
P/R-2 Achieve improved freight mobility by encouraging truck/rail/port/air infrastructure investments and efficiencies.
P/R-3 Provide Local Option Taxing authority for transportation-related initiatives.
P/R-4 Establish Index strategies for fuel taxes, vehicle registrations, and other transportation-related taxes and/or fees.
P/R-5 Create a Rental Car Fee to generate revenue for transportation initiatives.
P/R-6 Assess new growth and development Impact Fees for transportation facilities and distribute to all transportation jurisdictions within the stated area of impact.
REVENUE RECOMMENDATIONS
Idaho should increase revenue to the Highway Distribution Account by:
R-1 Increasing ALL Fuel Tax and ALL Vehicle Registration Fees as soon as possible.
R-2 Increasing Motor Vehicle-Imposed Fees to cover the cost of providing the services.
R-3 Eliminating or replacing the revenue impact of alternative fuels tax exemptions (e.g., ethanol, bio-diesel, hydrogen, or electric fuels).
The recommendations above are a menu of transportation investment alternatives that the Forum felt reflected a variety of revenue and policy adjustments that Idaho could make to address its transportation funding shortfall. Each should be carefully considered as to its role in providing critical funding for all modes of transportation in the state.
An important point to be made in the discussion of transportation funding projected to FY2035 is that the Forum only examined the capital needs of the state and did not attempt to quantify the funding needed to operate and maintain the current and future transportation network. Historical evidence tells us that operating and maintenance costs must be factored into the budgets of the nearly 300 jurisdictions responsible for transportation across the state.