Connecticut Legislature short-changed transportation funding by $650 million since 2011

From Yankee Institute.

Lawmakers short-changed Connecticut’s Special Transportation Fund by $650 million between 2011 and 2017, according to a transportation funding document released by Senate Republicans — more than enough to pay Connecticut’s portion of the new commuter rail line from New Haven to Springfield, Massachusetts.

The vast majority of the funds were “diverted” away from transportation funding, meaning the revenue scheduled to be placed in the STF was kept in the General Fund to aid with budget deficits and general government expenses.

Senate Republicans published their “Prioritize Progress” plan as an answer to Connecticut’s transportation funding problems which doesn’t rely on tolling Connecticut’s highways. Instead, the plan calls for more targeted bonding for Connecticut projects.

The STF is funded through several taxes and fees, including the gasoline tax, a gross receipts tax on petroleum companies, a portion of the state sales tax, motor vehicle receipts and licensing fees.

Connecticut’s transportation funding faces future difficulties due to escalating costs, and $4.3 billion in projects were suspended in January because the STF faced insolvency. Gov. Dannel Malloy and some state lawmakers have called for tolls on Connecticut’s highways to increase transportation funding by $1 billion per year.

See the full article from Yankee Institute online.