Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2005-01s RESOLUTION 2005-01 Urging the State to Aggressively Promote & Fund Public Transit Alternatives & Provide • Equity in Fundraising for Transportation Whereas, the Town of Pulaski has long supported the use of dedicated state funds, including user fees, as stable and long term solutions for transportation funding problems; and, Whereas, the Commonwealth Transportation Board has documented that more than $200 billion is needed to meet Virginia's transportation needs over the next 20 years; and, Whereas, Virginia's Transportation Trust Fund (TTF) supports the modes of highways (construction), rail and public transportation, aviation and the ports; and, Whereas, the TTF has not had a significant infusion of dedicated funds since its establishment in 1986; and, Whereas, the TTF consists of a dedicated portion of the state sales and use tax, the dedicated portions of the state tax on fuels, and other transportation related fees including the DMV registration fee and the motor vehicles sales and use tax; and, Whereas, the Town of Pulaski recognizes that a healthy transportation program supported with dedicated funds protects core government services, including K-12 education and public safety, that rely on valuable state general funds, and, Whereas, as the state demonstrated with the enactment of the Virginia Transportation Act in 2000, relying on valuable state general funds to support transportation funding is akin to • mortgaging a new home solely on high interest credit cards: the capital is costly, and the debt ultimately must be transferred to another instrument; and, Whereas, in the case of the VTA, the debt was transferred back to the TTF, thus increasing current transportation debt to 14 percent of total transportation spending (as opposed to approximately one percent in 1989), and reducing the amount of funding available for construction; and, Whereas, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) estimates that total transportation revenue growth will average only 2 percent for the next six years; and, Whereas, state transportation revenue flowing to the primary, secondary and urban systems will continue to decline to a critical point without an infusion of new dedicated funds; and, Whereas, in fiscal year 2005, only 35 percent of VDOT's construction funding is allocated to the interstate, primary, secondary and urban systems, commonly referred to systems construction, as compared to the 58 percent allocated to systems construction in 1989; and, Whereas, systems construction will decrease on average by 6.7 percent during each of the next five years, with VDOT expected to spend $792 million on systems construction in FY05 but only $560.3 million in FY10; and, Whereas, the reason for the precipitous drop-off in transportation dollars for construction since the early 1990s is due to several factors, including the increased cost of maintenance of an aging infrastructure, an increase in the number of highway users, an increase in the funds required to pay off debt that was issued in the 1990s, and, '' Whereas, the construction dollars that are available do not go as far as they once did because of ` ~ the rise in construction costs; and, Whereas, local officials across Virginia generally agree that additional state funding is required . for transportation, including new and increased dedicated funds; and, Whereas, local officials support funding solutions that are systemic and sustainable on a long term basis, as opposed to one-time transfers and short term infusions that only mask the funding problems; and, Now therefore, be it resolved that the Town of Pulaski calls upon the Governor and the General Assembly to make transportation a primary focus of the 2005 General Assembly session. Given the failure of the General Assembly to address this issue during the 2004 session, and the consequent decline in transportation funding, the Commonwealth is experiencing disinvestment in its transportation infrastructure. Absent a major infusion of new and sustained investment in transportation, Virginia faces a congestion and mobility crisis that will strangle economic growth and profoundly and negatively affect the quality of life of all residents. Now therefore, be it further resolved that the Town of Pulaski strongly urges the state to aggressively promote and fund public transit alternatives and to provide equity in fundraising for transportation. Greater funding and public awareness will help to increase transit ridership. This Resolution is adopted and is effective upon adoption on this 4s' day of January, 2005 by recorded vote as follows: Jeffrey S. Worrell -Aye Dan Talbert, Jr. -Aye Bettye H. Steger -Aye • Lane R. Penn -Aye John T. Bolen -Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. -Aye The Town of Pulaski, Virginia BY: I' Charles L. Wade, Mayor ATTEST: e~ Patricia Cruise, Clerk of Council r~ L