"more accountable, set priorities, and spend smarter - that's what we need to be about."
While these are laudable goals, albeit subjective goals, and something every government entity should aspire toward, it seems as though Pawlenty has decided to stick with only one of the three principles when outlining his most recent bonding bill request for the upcoming session. Given the new reality of bridge politics, Pawlenty has made transportation funding a priority. However, it might have been more effective if he had come to the party sooner rather than later in terms of funding transportation.
From Blue Man:
We have a funding mechanism in place to assist in maintaining our state's infrastructure, specifically our states roads and bridges. Raise the gas tax. According to Article 14, Section 10 of the Minnesota Constitution, all proceeds of the gas tax go to our state's roads.
On Accountability:
While the bridge collapse cannot be blamed on Governor Pawlenty, he cannot deny that he is ultimately accountable for transportation in the State of Minnesota. Accountability involves creating a comprehensive long term plan that takes into account the most immediate needs of local government while determining how we can sustain such support for the future. Pawlenty has overcompensated due to a lack of past accountability on the issues of sustainable transportation needs.
On Spending Smarter:
Is it spending smarter to flood local entities with four times as much funding as they are ready to handle or utilize? Spending smarter would have been giving the local entities what they are ready to use immediately. Spending smarter would have been avoiding reactionary spending simply because a tragedy has forced you to acknowledge infrastructure. Rather than spend smarter, Governor Pawlenty has chosen the route of reactionary spending.
It is clear that Governor Pawlenty has seen the light when it comes to transportation. Yet, it makes me wonder why transportation emergencies amount to four times more funding than needed or requested while education emergencies in the state are met with calls for accountability and flat funding?
