Transportation Package

Moving both people and goods from one location to another for any given reason is what transportation is all about. Transportation is clearly one of the few activities that has been part of Humanity for many millennia and will continue to be an integral part of all of our futures.

Both the Democratic and Republican Transportation Packages that just failed were missing two key features. “Long Term Reliability” and “Decentralized Control” of what is needed across this State. These two features are also the only way businesses will return to Oregon because not one business will come back, let alone start, knowing that the government can change its mind at any moment that will, yet again, cost everything they have.

Former Representative Bill Post gave an emotional list of companies running for their financial lives from Oregon. Why? Today’s Oregon government is totally unreliable in that at any time or any place the government will rear its ugly head with regulations, taxes, fees, or half-fulfilled promises that will destroy any possibility of success. Oregon is unreliable!

Remember a few years ago, some Counties in Oregon sued the State for road dollars, and won. At the time, the total was over $3 Billion. Begs the question: What was Salem doing with the money that Salem could not send it out to the Counties? In 2016, there were some Counties that got less the 20% of the revenues from the State that they should have gotten. Most of the taxes collected stayed in Salem rather than being sent out to where the fuel was used. Now all we hear about is Governor Kotek having to lay off government workers and not having enough money to hire about 200 more people. To do what?

What this State needs is to have the fuel taxes go the Counties automatically. That means that the Treasurer sends the Revenues directly to the County Commissioners, under strict restrictions, that the fuel tax revenues must be used on the transportation infrastructure. Infrastructure that does not include busses or rail lines. With any money left over going into some kind of untouchable savings account for larger projects. And all funds given to the Counties can’t be used as collateral to borrow against. Any entity, County or State, would be allowed to “Save up” for larger expenses such as bridge over a river.

There will be a big difference in construction cost when the County Commissioners are limited to spend what you have vs. spend what you can get by get by barrowing. This is where saving the money for future use comes into play. The County Commissioners must look at the cash flow to work out how to best use the money for roads and bridges. Their jobs as Commissioners are riding on fiscal responsibility and delivery of quality roads and bridges that will support growth long into the future. What looks to be about 750 government jobs would change to about 400 jobs distributed out to the Counties. And those people must live in the County, NOT Salem.

Local control, local contractors, and local knowledge,  taking care of the roads and bridges by local people in office and government is the only way any transportation bill has any chance of success.

I remember my father telling us kids about a road that was built next to the Aurora Airport. It was built sometime in the 1930’s out of cement as it was clearly intended to be there for a very long time. Dad would tell us about going there for high school drag races because that strip of concrete was smooth, straight, and long enough for good races and open enough at both ends to escape if they got caught. Over the years of driving up and down that road, I watched it get repaved at least five times. Every time, the new asphalt surface would wear through to the original concrete. Twice, the groves in the asphalt were just filed in. The point is that the original road clearly cost more to build, however, “Long Term” that was the least cost  way to build that road to handle the amount of traffic that it saw. County Commissioners can look at what is going on in neighborhood to make the correct decisions about what to do long term support for local growth.

We all know that collecting fuel tax revenues cost less than 1% of collected the money. Keep the collecting  in the hands of the State. The State  should be able to save for things like the new and desperately needed Columbia River bridge. Large projects that cross State Boundaries  should be covered by the State.

There is only one way to get the money we spend on transportation  spent on roads and bridges instead of 500 to 700 government employees in Salem. We must amend the Constitution with the following set of parameters:

  1. Transportation and Education are to be considered as Eternal and On-going projects.
  2. The revenues collected from fuel taxes and use fees must be held by the Treasurer.
    1. 1% goes to the State general fund. Period.
    2. 9% goes to savings over which the Legislature has no access and can NOT be collateralized for bonds or any other form of loans. Legislative Oversight, yes, Legislative bribery, NO.
    3. The Treasurer can only release those funds to State transportation projects that do not include busses or rail lines.
    4. The Treasurer releases the remaining funds to the Counties WHERE THE FUEL WAS CONSUMED. And without delay.
    5. The State shall collect any local fuel taxes above the State fuel tax.
  3. The County Treasurer shall be in charge of bidding and contracts. (not Salem)
    1. The County Treasurer shall release the funds for transportation projects as needed.
    2. The County Treasurer shall place in savings accounts, not under control of the State, 10% of what is given to the County for projects that may need higher funds to cross County boundaries or natural boundaries such as rivers or valley or creation of new roads.
  4. The City Treasurer shall be in charge of holding funds for local roads and bridges.
    1. City Fuel tax revenues must be voted on by the city that wants to provide busses and must be the only source for the money to run their local bussing. AGAIN, no borrowed or bonds may be sold for any eternal or ongoing operations.
    2. The Treasurer shall distribute directly to any fuel taxes revenues collected for City bussing. The Cities are restricted from using the funds on anything else.
  5. Counties are subject to audits every third year by the Treasurer. 8 to 16 counties shall be audited every third year allowing for size and location of each County. All funds to conduct the audits shall come from the 10% held by the State.
  6. Philanthropy by private citizens shall pass through to the City, County, or State it was intended to go to, shall not be considered as On-Going revenues, and shall be held in savings until needed.
  7. Any form of corruption such as kickbacks, failing to use the funds on the project, or excessive waste shall be punishable by lifetime removal from  office and filing criminal charges as defined by Law.

The above list needs to be turned into an Oregon Constitutional Amendment that probably won’t be allowed under the “only one change” rule. The People of Oregon must repeal that amendment if The-People of Oregon are to ever get on with our lives.

Until We-The-People are protected from politicians via a Constitution that clearly defines the duties and responsibilities of government, there is no way that our Transportation or Education, for that matter,  will be ready for the future needs of Oregon or America.

Perhaps a better way to describe “Eternal and On-Going” would be “Timeless”. We must look at Transportation and Education as  being a “Timeless” issues. There is no end to the need of quality roads and bridges and their maintenance. This issue is addressed in the “Phoenix Project” in the section called “Bill of Responsibilities”.