LETTER: State road funding adequate in spite of what Gottlieb says

To Ozaukee Press:

The purpose of state transportation spending is to meet the infrastructure needs of Wisconsin residents and industry.

Given the constant drone of commercials lamenting our transportation policy, you would think the point of transportation spending is to line the pockets of the special interests funding the advertising campaign.

Wisconsin’s transportation budget is working more efficiently and producing better results than ever before.

Republican lawmakers working with Gov. Scott Walker and a reform-minded leader of the Department of Transportation are demonstrating that a 21st century transportation agenda doesn’t require massive tax hikes.

Our current state budget spends just over $6 billion on transportation. The state is spending more on general transportation aids, which go to local governments, in fiscal years 2018 and 2019 than ever before—$896 million).

For the first time in decades the local bridge program is fully funded; 183 local highway bridges are being repaired or rebuilt.

If it wasn’t for fed-swap reform that I and other lawmakers advocated for, road projects would be more costly.

This gives the DOT the flexibility to substitute state dollars for federal dollars on certain projects in order to avoid the extra regulatory compliance costs attached to the federal aid.

Other savings come from eliminating the state prevailing wage requirement and better DOT negotiations with transportation contractors.

In fiscal year 2017, taxpayers saved $127.2 million as a result.

Former DOT secretary Mark Gottlieb has attacked both Gov. Walker and the reforms legislative Republicans and the DOT have championed. Gottlieb’s posturing is a dishonest attempt to cover for his own failures while secretary of the agency.         

A nonpartisan Legislative Audit Bureau review of DOT found that under Gottlieb’s leadership the cost of 16 major highway projects was underestimated by $3.1 billion, billions were spent on projects that only had a single bidder and numerous organizational inefficiencies plagued the agency.

Wisconsin has a transportation budget that works for taxpayers, not special interests.

Road builders may argue for gas tax hikes while screaming that the sky is falling, but they do so only while ignoring reality.

State Sen. Duey Stroebel
Cedarburg
The letter writer represents the 20th Senate District.