Last week I posted about the Safe Roads and Bridges Act introduced in the legislature. That bill has caused quite the uproar in the right wing blogosphere with its gas tax and provision tying such a tax to inflation.
The biggest source of fear and concern is coming from Residual Forces author, Andy Aplikowski. He has been furiously reporting (here, here, here, here, & here) about the possibility that a number of Republicans will vote to override a suspected Pawlenty veto on the Transportation Bill. Obviously, I take this news as a sign that there are Republicans in the state legislature who understand the art of compromise but Andy is trying desperately to beat them back into submission.
Gary Gross, on the other hand, takes a far more cautious tone with respect to the news that Aplikowski is putting out there. Unfortunately, in doing so, Gross lambasts Democrats for taking out the indexed piece of the legislation. Apparently Democrats are damned if they do compromise and damned if they don't. While most would take this news as a sign that Democrats are willing to work with the minority to find the most broad appeal but Gross and other Republicans are having nothing to do with it. It couldn't be more clear to the public that while Democrats are willing to cede some ground in the interest of passing a bill, Republicans like Andy and Gary are going to sink the ship before they ever allow true compromise to take place.
As I asked Gary in his comments section:
Given that the Democrats have compromised on a provision by taking index to inflation out of the bill, what items are the Republican minority willing to compromise upon?
It seems like a fairly honest way to negotiate in order to finally get something accomplished but only time will tell. Perhaps these Republicans have never learned the art of compromise or the concept of negotiation.
In related news, the State Auditor released a report today on State Highways and Bridges. Some of their concerns are as follows:
In related news, the State Auditor released a report today on State Highways and Bridges. Some of their concerns are as follows:
Between 2002 and 2007, spending on road preservation decreased, with the amount being spent on new construction projects increasing to over half of the construction budget. Previously, new construction spending was about 25% of the construction budget.
The Auditor attributes this shift to the increased use of trunk highway bonding, which has been championed by the Pawlenty Administration, to fund transportation. As a result, road upkeep has suffered and they aren’t as safe.
The OLA says Mn/DOT’s spending is not aligned with its “preservation first” policy.
The Legislative Auditor found that Mn/DOT needs additional resources for fracture-critical bridge inspections.
When construction projects come in over budget, the overruns are taken out of preservation dollars, which means less-safe roads and bridges. In the FY 2002-03 biennium, $36 million was diverted from maintenance to construction.
Mn/DOT estimates that by 2012, it will take all of its forecasted resources (about $672 million/year) just to keep up with preservation. This is $350 million/year more than Mn/DOT is currently planning to spend.
The pavement conditions of our trunk highways are in worse condition than they were five years ago, and they will continue to decline. If we continue current funding levels, the number of roads rated “poor” will double by 2011.
In 2002, 72% of the state’s roads had pavement in good condition. Today, only 66% of our roads have this rating.
We must renew our focus on preserving our state’s existing roads and bridges. If we let them deteriorate beyond repair, replacement costs will only continue to skyrocket.
This administration’s reliance on transportation bonding is not only fiscally irresponsible, but jeopardizes the safety of our infrastructure and citizens.
Mn/DOT needs stable, dedicated resources to ensure that they can properly preserve and maintain our state’s roads and bridges.
We must move forward with an investment in transportation that will keep our roads and bridges safe.
1 Response to "The Art Of Compromise OR Damned If You Do..."
There's only one problem with that theory. The House GOP leadership are willing to compromise downward to a .05 cent a gallon tax increase.
It's Steve Murphy & Tony Sertich that aren't willing to compromise. When Gov. Pawlenty offered a special session with a gas tax increase on the table, Murphy said that he wasn't willing to tinker around the edges, that he planned to make his case around the state. I don't think many people think of that as being willing to compromise.