Recognizing that dramatically reduced federal funding of
highway construction will mean there isn’t enough cash to pay for all of the
state’s planned road repair and construction projects, Wyoming legislators are
moving ahead with drafting of legislative proposals to take away the authority
of the state’s appointed Transportation Commission for setting prioroties among
the highway projects competing for scarce resources. Legislators expect to be asked
to increase Wyoming motor fuel taxes, and if they do, they want more specific
control of where in their state the money gets spent.
Despite warnings from some Senators about unintended
consequences of legislative intervention in scarce resource allocation, the
Joint Transportation, Highways and Military Affairs Interim Committee voted
Wednesday to proceed with revision of the priority setting authority of the
non-partisan Transportation Commission. In blatant recognition that a major
pillar of political power in their districts is the ability to allocate funds
to local projects, legislators’ votes overlooked warnings stemming from
legislative interference earlier this year with project priorities set by the
state’s School Facilities Commission.
Describing school construction priority setting this spring
as a “fiasco,” Sheridan Senator Jonathan Botten said, “We had to compromise and
we ended up spending a whole lot more money than what was originally intended.”
The other side of the intra-government power struggle is reflected by
Thermopolis Representative Lorraine Quarterberg’s remark that if the fuel tax
is increased, residents and elected officials have a right to be more involved
in deciding where the money is going.
Apparently Wyoming legislators have forgotten that
politicization of spending decisions was the reason the Transportation
Commission and School Facilities Commission were set up in the first place.
