State works to turn tax into road, bridge repairs

Now that Iowa has increased its fuel tax, there is an expectation the state’s road and bridge problem is solved.

But, there are still questions about how the money will be spent, and ag groups are looking for ways to further improve road conditions.

Iowa Department of Transportation (IDOT) officials say they are working to put the money into road and bridge repairs as quickly as possible.

“The code very specifically states that 100 percent of the (new) money is spent on critical road and bridge projects,” says Stuart Anderson, of the planning, programming and modal division of the IDOT.

That specific language and legislative intent is in regards to the IDOT’s share of the money. The language is slightly different for counties and cities.

The bottom line, Anderson says, is the intent is to spend the new money on critical items.

The 10-cent-per-gallon fuel-tax increase is expected to generate $213 million per year for the next few years. An increase in some fees will add about $1.5 million to that, meeting the $215 million-per-year figure touted as the amount the state needs to keep up with critical infrastructure needs.

Of that total, 47.5 percent (about $101 million per year) goes to the IDOT. Another 32.5 percent (about $69 million) goes to the counties, and 20 percent (about $43 million) goes to the cities.

Senate File 257 (the bill that included the fuel tax increase), went into effect right away on March 1. Prices went up quickly. But, tax dollars don’t just immediately fall into state coffers. It often takes several months for the collection process.

None-the-less, the immediate implementation of the tax did speed the movement of dollars into the state.

A report released May 19 by TRIP, a national transportation research group, says 22 percent of Iowa’s rural bridges are deficient. That number is the third highest in the country.

IDOT statistics show there are 114,740 miles of roads and 24,799 bridges in the state. While the gross dollars taken in through the fuel tax have continued to rise, they have risen below the rate of inflation, meaning it became more difficult year after year to repair those roads and bridges and to build new ones.

The same discussion is happening at the national level (see sidebar).

Anderson says the IDOT’s five-year plan includes an additional $501.7 million (about $100 million per year) due to the passage of Senate File 257.

Of that total, about $80 million will go toward bridge repairs and other items directly related to safety. A significant amount of money will also go toward four-lane improvements to Highways 20, 30 and 61. This will mark the first time in three years the commission has been able to fund the long-term effort to expand those roads. While investment in four-lane construction projects is not a repair, that does not mean it is not critical, IDOT officials argue.

Meanwhile, the hope is the money going to counties and cities is used on bridge replacement and road repairs and improvements. The state’s many county roads and gravel roads would be repaired through the county’s share of the money.

The Iowa Soybean Association has been pushing for another move which might benefit rural residents. The ISA estimates it would cost an estimated $300,000 to make Iowa State University’s bridge-load testing program available statewide, and the ISA Board of Directors voted earlier this year to provide $50,000 of that amount for the project.

ISA officials approached legislators with the idea of a $250,000 appropriation for the remainder of the funding. But, support for another appropriation for road funding on the heels of the gas-tax increase has been difficult to find.

As a result, ISA officials are talking to the IDOT’s Iowa Highway Research Board about the possibility of a grant which would come from existing state funds to fund the bridge-testing program.

Meanwhile, the state’s farm organizations are generally supportive of the fuel-tax increase and hope it will lead to safer roads and bridges.

“We regard the passage of it (the fuel tax increase) as a win,” says Mike Steenhoek, executive director of the Soy Transportation Coalition. “We look forward to some of the money being provided to rural roads and bridges.”

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