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June 14, 2007 |
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UPCOMING MBTA
EVENTS |
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Washington County Meeting
Today
Eastport
Chowder House, Eastport
5 p.m.
Infrastructure Golf Tournament
Thursday, July 12
Augusta Country
Club
9 a.m.
Aroostook County Meeting
Thursday, August 2
Northeastland
Hotel, Presque Isle
5 pm
Fall Convention
Friday, September 14-16
Samoset
Resort, Rockport
For more information,
contact the MBTA at (207) 622-0526
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Please
contact your legislator today
Urge them
to support the Majority Report on LD
1790!
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For the past year, MBTA, along
with many others, has been working on finding a solution to Maine’s
transportation funding crisis. After months of policy research,
survey research and policy analysis, we developed LD 1790, “An Act
to Sustain Maine’s Transportation Future,” sponsored by Senator
Dennis Damon.
LD 1790 has been called “the
most important piece of transportation legislation in 50 years."
It is now before the
legislature to be acted upon in the last few days of the session
that is expected to end on Wednesday, June 20. Please contact
your legislators today and ask them to support the Majority Report
on LD 1790. [Note: more detailed information on LD 1790 is
available on the MBTA website on the advocacy page, www.mbtaonline.org or click on InvestmentFundingCrisis].
Maine’s transportation infrastructure is in crisis. In
the last two years, more than $200 million in projects have been cut
from MaineDOT’s capital program.
The bond issue passed by
voters yesterday will restore only some of the projects,
while others have been reduced in scope. By every measure, the state
is failing to even maintain the status quo in terms of its
transportation infrastructure. The Highway Fund budget (LD 781) now
before the legislature will only exacerbate the problem of drastic
cuts to the MaineDOT capital program. Consider this: in order to
maintain highway capital spending levels set in the 2004-2005
biennium, an increase of $216 million is needed given the spike in
construction inflation. Instead, dollars for capital are being cut
by $28.5 million, or 29.7%, in this budget.
Non-highway transportation, including both capital and
operational costs, has been similarly underfunded for decades. LD
1790 is the only bill before the legislature that addresses the
funding crisis.
Why
your legislator should support LD
1790
LD 1790 provides stable, reliable
long-term funding for our transportation
infrastructure.
LD 1790 sets, for the first time
ever, measurable goals and debt policy to guide transportation
investment.
LD 1790 creates new financing
mechanisms for transportation capital investment under the Maine
Municipal Bond Bank. One is GARVEE bond authority, and the other is
a TransCap Trust Fund, a grant and loan authority to fund
transportation projects.
LD 1790 sequesters funds in the
Maine Municipal Bond Bank by dedicating revenues to transportation
capital improvements and protecting those funds from being
diverted for other purposes.
The TransCap Trust Fund will
be funded by:
- Reallocated highway funds gained
through a gradual reduction of Highway Fund support for the State
Police
- A set aside of 7.5% of motor fuel tax
revenues
- Modest registration fee increases,
some of which haven’t been adjusted in over 15
years
- A phased in set-aside of sales tax
receipts generated by vehicle and transportation related
sales.
- Once fully in effect, the TransCap
Trust Fund would generate an additional $98 million per year for
highway and bridge improvements
- New revenues set aside in the STAR
account would support alternate modes of transportation funded by
auto rental tax receipts and 10% of the sales-tax set-aside.
This would eventually total $12 million per
year.
The current biennial approach
to capital financing provides an unreliable and unpredictable flow
of capital that wastes millions due to resulting project
deferrals and cancellations like we have witnessed so extensively in
recent years.
Find your legislator – http://janus.state.me.us/house/townlist.htm.
To leave a message for you legislator, call the numbers
below:
House members: 1-800-423-2900
Senate members:
1-800-423-6900
It is critical
that your legislators hear from you – and from many others.
Please ask for help from everyone you
know who cares about the future of Maine's economy and the safety of
our citizens about this – friends, co-workers and family. Ask them
to please contact their legislators in support of the Majority Report on LD 1790. We need to show legislators just how important an
issue this is to the people of Maine!
Thank you.
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