This Washington
House Transportation Budget: $55 Million For Ferries, Maintenance, Transit
State house transportation chair Judy Clibborn unveiled a $9.8 state transportation budget today that includes $55 million over the next two years for "immediate needs," including funding ($6.5 million) for a new car ferry; $8 million for highway maintenance; $2.5 million for the Safe Routes to School program; and $10 million to fund transit service from the state's multimodal transportation account.
In today's press conference, Rep. Andy Billig (D-3, Spokane) said the proposed budget was "very much about jobs," with "over 43,000 jobs created or sustained" by the budget.
That last $10 million would have been transferred out of the multimodal account under Gov. Chris Gregoire's proposed transportation budget; Clibborn's proposal restores it and earmarks it for regional, city, county, and rural transit.
Overall, the budget is $770 million more than the last biennium's, primarily because the state is spending hundreds of millions in bond proceeds for the new 520 bridge. The budget also includes $41 million for utility relocations associated with the Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement project, $61 million for the Columbia River Crossing project, and $36 million for tolling on a widened I-405.
The budget is separate from legislation that would give cities and counties the authority to impose a variety of fees to pay for local transportation, including a vehicle-license fee (up to $40), a motor-vehicle excise tax (up to one percent of a car's value), and a local gas tax (up to one cent for cities and three cents for counties, with the total not to exceed three cents).
I'll have more on the implications of the proposed transportation budget later today. In the meantime, you can read it for yourself right here.
In today's press conference, Rep. Andy Billig (D-3, Spokane) said the proposed budget was "very much about jobs," with "over 43,000 jobs created or sustained" by the budget.
That last $10 million would have been transferred out of the multimodal account under Gov. Chris Gregoire's proposed transportation budget; Clibborn's proposal restores it and earmarks it for regional, city, county, and rural transit.
Overall, the budget is $770 million more than the last biennium's, primarily because the state is spending hundreds of millions in bond proceeds for the new 520 bridge. The budget also includes $41 million for utility relocations associated with the Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement project, $61 million for the Columbia River Crossing project, and $36 million for tolling on a widened I-405.
The budget is separate from legislation that would give cities and counties the authority to impose a variety of fees to pay for local transportation, including a vehicle-license fee (up to $40), a motor-vehicle excise tax (up to one percent of a car's value), and a local gas tax (up to one cent for cities and three cents for counties, with the total not to exceed three cents).
I'll have more on the implications of the proposed transportation budget later today. In the meantime, you can read it for yourself right here.
