Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
The Hon. William Straus, House Chair, Joint Committee on Transportation
The Hon. Thomas McGee, Senate Chair, Joint Committee on Transportation
The Hon. Stephen Kulik, Vice Chair, House Committee on Ways and Means
The Hon. Stephen Brewer, Chair, Senate Committee on Ways and Means
The Hon. Peter Durant, Member, Joint Committee on Transportation
The Hon. Robert Hedlund, Member, Joint Committee on Transportation
Conference Committee on Legislation Financing Improvements to the Commonwealth’s Transportation System
State House, Boston
Dear Representative Straus, Senator McGee, Representative Kulik, Senator Brewer, Representative Durant, and Senator Hedlund:
On behalf of the cities and towns of the Commonwealth, the Massachusetts Municipal Association is writing regarding legislation to finance improvements to the Commonwealth’s transportation system that has been approved in the House (H. 3882) and Senate (S. 2033). This vital measure is before your conference committee for consideration and agreement.
Local officials across the state very much appreciate the one-year, $300 million Chapter 90 bond act approved last year for local road projects in fiscal 2014 and remain disappointed in the Administration’s decision to withhold $100 million from cities and towns. We believe that a five-year, $300 million per year Chapter 90 authorization is the best way to bring stability to local road construction and repair programs and facilitate strong and effective long-range planning at the municipal level. A long-term Chapter 90 framework is in the public interest because the stability and predictability that comes with a multi-year authorization maximizes the efficient use of taxpayer dollars, enables communities to plan and invest systematically to address safety and congestion issues, and provides the investment necessary to create jobs and support economic growth.
By planning and investing more in Chapter 90 funding, cities and towns will improve the quality of local roads and save taxpayers millions of dollars a year. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, once a local road is in a state of good repair, every dollar invested to keep it properly maintained will save $6 to $10 in avoided repair costs that become necessary to rebuild the road when it fails due to a lack of maintenance.
Last year, the Legislature adopted various new transportation finance rules, including a requirement in Chapter 18 of the Acts of 2013 that cities and towns use Chapter 90 authorizations within a five-year period. In addition, section 12 of Chapter 46 of the Acts of 2013 established a Performance and Asset Management Commission to develop guidelines for the state and municipalities for pavement management plans. Some of the provisions in H. 3882 and S. 2023 would revisit and undermine these changes and reforms, and we ask that they not be included in the Conference Committee report.
Chapter 90 Appropriation and Bond Authorization
The MMA strongly supports a multi-year Chapter 90 authorization of at least five years to enable cities and towns to better plan and program local road construction projects. A multi-year bond authorization will eliminate the project delays that occur when authorizations are based on one-year bond bills. As you know, the local construction season has been significantly shortened in each of the past three years due to this year-by-year approach. Section 2A of Senate 2023 (item 6122-1224) would provide an appropriation of $1.5 billion intended to support a five-year $300 million annual local road construction program. The similar provisions in H. 3882 would provide $300 million for one-year program in fiscal 2015. We strongly support the Senate appropriation.
Last year, the MMA released a report documenting that cities and towns across the state need to spend at least $562 million every year just to bring local roads into a state of good repair, the industry standard for ensuring well-maintained roads in good condition. Currently, municipalities spend far less because of inadequate resources and because, for most cities and towns, Chapter 90 is the only source of funds for road construction and repair. Funding the Chapter 90 program at $300 million annually, with an inflation-based adjustment, will close a portion of this huge gap.
We also note that the Chapter 90 program is the most effective and efficient way to ensure regional equity and regional access to the increased transportation tax revenues included in the final transportation finance bill, including the increase in the gas tax that was supported by the MMA. Chapter 90 shares transportation revenues in a fair way in every corner of the Commonwealth. Further, cities and towns face such a backlog of need that the $300 million annual investment will immediately result in visible and necessary construction and repair projects on local roads across Massachusetts.
Local Road Construction Planning
Cities and towns undertake long-term capital planning for an impressively wide variety of public infrastructure under municipal control, including municipal and school buildings, water and sewer systems, and municipal roads and bridges funded by Chapter 90 and other state and local revenues. One of the reforms initiated in Chapter 46 of the Acts of 2013 was the creation of the Performance and Asset Management Commission that has been charged with providing both state and local government with guidance on the management of transportation assets, including proper planning for construction, maintenance and financing.
Section 27 of S. 2023 would require all cities and towns to file with the Department of Transportation (MassDOT) a single five-year plan for Chapter 90 projects no later than December 31, 2014. This section would require the plan to include a variety of mandatory design features that are generally not related to local road projects. Preparation of the plans at the local level and administration of this entire process by the MassDOT district and central offices would be very costly and burdensome to both local and state government. We firmly oppose section 27 as a preemption of the work of the Performance and Asset Management Commission that is still underway. The commission has yet to issue any planning recommendations, and section 27 would thus conflict with a reform that was passed only months ago.
Metropolitan Planning Organizations
Section 30 of S. 2023 would establish a special commission to conduct a study of the metropolitan planning organizations. We support this important proposal. Because of the crucial role that cities and towns serve in the several MPOs, we ask that the composition of this commission include two municipal members, one from a town and one from a city.
Timely Notification
We support the provision in S. 2033 that would change the official Chapter 90 notification date from April 1 to March 1 of each year. This would ensure that cities and towns have access to their Chapter 90 funds for the entire construction season.
In order to avoid another frustrating and costly delay in the start of local road projects for the upcoming construction season, we respectfully and urgently ask the conference committee to report a compromise bill as quickly as possible and ask that the Legislature complete action on the multi-year $300 million Chapter 90 bond authorization as soon as possible so that the measure is on the Governor’s desk before April 1. Otherwise, using history as a guide, the fiscal 2015 authorization would likely be delayed as well, which would therefore delay important projects, repairs and maintenance in virtually every city and town. It is this context that clearly underscores the importance of a multi-year Chapter 90 bond bill, so cities and towns can know what their Chapter 90 authorization is over the long-term and plan more effectively.
On behalf of cities and towns in every corner of the Commonwealth, we thank you and your colleagues in the Legislature for your strong and abiding support for the Chapter 90 program. We applaud your unanimous support to increase the Chapter 90 authorization to $300 million a year and recognize that this program is one of your top priorities. As you know, these funds are needed because cities and towns maintain and repair 30,000 miles of local roadways, a cornerstone of the state’s transportation infrastructure system. Passing this legislation will inject vital funds into our economy, create good jobs, improve safety, save taxpayer dollars, and build a stronger future for Massachusetts.
If you have any questions regarding the Chapter 90 and municipal issues before the conference committee, please do not hesitate to have your office contact me, John Robertson or Tom Philbin of the MMA staff at any time at (617) 426-7272.
Thank you very much.
Sincerely,
Geoffrey C. Beckwith
Executive Director, MMA