The County Line
- Volume 51, Number 2 - 2007
Making Alabama's roads safe will take time and money.
Many people are credited with the observation found in a Chinese Proverb that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. And, if you are talking about raising revenue for road and bridge activities, you can be certain that everyone who has ever uttered those words would agree the observation is right on point.
Any effort to raise additional revenue will be a difficult journey in today’s political climate. That’s just stating the obvious. The rising cost of gasoline certainly makes the challenge even more substantial. However, more than 300 people lost their lives on county roads in Alabama last year.
Gasoline and motor fuel taxes – the main sources of revenue for maintaining Alabama’s rural roads and bridges – has not been increased since 1993. But, the cost of maintaining county roads and bridges at a safe level has increased at a rate faster than normal inflation. Simply put, if we do not journey toward additional revenue, the situation will only worsen.
That journey – a journey that is designed to conclude with additional revenue to make our rural roads and bridges safer for those motorists that travel them each day – began in a very positive way near the end of this year’s Regular Session of the Alabama Legislature.
It will be a long journey, for sure, but it won’t be the first long, difficult journey we’ve traveled together.
This year, a total of four pieces of legislation related to road construction and repair were introduced in the Alabama Legislature. Each bill plays an important part in what must be accomplished if we are to keep our roads and bridges safe in the coming decades. None of the bills were passed into law this year. In fact, none of the bills even gained committee approval in the House of Representatives. But, we did begin the journey.
A very important, two-hour public hearing was conducted on all four bills by the House’s General Finance Committee, chaired by Rep. John Knight (D-District 77). Although no votes were taken on the bills, the discussion will help shape the challenges we will face together during the 2008 Regular Session – for that’s when the real push will begin to pass the legislation.
The four bills include legislation authorizing a second county bridge bond issue of at least $250 million, sponsored by Rep. Mike Hill (R-District 41); legislation authorizing each county commission to levy a local gasoline tax of up to 5 cents per gallon to support the improvement of county roads and bridges, sponsored by Rep. Mac Gipson (R-District 88); legislation changing the collection point of the statewide gasoline and motor fuel taxes, sponsored by Rep. Johnny Mac Morrow (D-District 18); and legislation linking the amount of the statewide gasoline and motor fuel taxes to cost of road construction, also sponsored by Rep. Gipson.
Three county engineers were a part of the public hearing – Elmore County Engineer Richie Beyer, CEA, Pike County Engineer Herb Huner and Houston County Engineer Mark Pool. Although several other speakers participated in the hearing, it was obvious that these three engineers provided our legislators with information that “hit home.”
Huner, for example, discussed the bridges that were replaced in Pike County as part of the ultra-successful Garvee Bond Program initiated in 2000. Armed with a map of Pike County showing those bridges that are still in need of replacement, Huner told the committee the needs far exceed his normal operating budget.
“Without another bridge bond issue,” he said, “we won’t have enough money to replace these bridges during any of our careers.”
Pool outlined for the committee all the steps that have been taken in Houston County to reduce the fatality rate on county roads. Many of the expenditures that have resulted in a reduction in the rate of fatal automobile accidents on the roads in Houston County, Pool said, are simply beyond the financial reach of most Alabama counties.
“Most counties do not have any extra money in their road and bridge departments to do anything more than routine maintenance, so these things won’t be addressed in your county unless there is some revenue from somewhere else,” Pool explained.
Beyer’s testimony focused on an inventory of the condition of the Elmore County roads and bridges, which his office prepared to illustrate the significance of the problem throughout Alabama.
“Our needs are tremendous,” Beyer explained. “And, you must remember that in comparison to many other counties, our roads and bridges are in pretty good shape.”
The committee did not vote on any of the four bills. In fact, those working for the passage of the legislation – including ACCA — asked that no votes be taken during the 2007 session. But, when the Alabama Legislature returns to Montgomery for the 2008 session, the attitude will be different.
The journey has begun. It will not be a journey of 1,000 miles. It will be a journey to make every mile of Alabama’s county roads safe for those who drive on them each and every day. It will certainly be a difficult journey – but one that can be traveled successfully.
There’s another Chinese Proverb that may help us as we travel this journey in the next year, “A man grows most tired while standing still.”
Our revenues for road and bridge maintenance in this state have stood still for far too long. But, thank goodness, we’re not too tired to start the journey toward a solution.
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