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The 2013 Texas
Legislative session is shaping up to be a watershed moment for texas'
transportation infrastructure--are we going to be prepared for expected
growth or not?
What
they are saying about state funding
From the Fort Worth Star-Telegram February 2,
2012
Texas automobile owners could face higher annual
motor vehicle registration fees in the coming years to raise new
revenue for roads.
Texas Transportation Commission chairman Ted
Houghton of El Paso is in Euless this morning, speaking to a group of
about 200 transportation advocates from the Fort Worth and Dallas
areas. Houghton offered a preview of issues that are likely to be
discussed in the months leading up to the 2013 regular legislative
session in Austin.
Houghton noted that although he is prohibited as commission chairman
from advocating for (or against) specific laws that would raise
transportation revenue, he will be suggesting to state lawmakers in
the coming months that it's time to raise revenue for highways and
other transportation projects.
He told a joint meeting of the Tarrant Regional Transportation
Coalition and Dallas Regional Mobility Coalition that, while it's not
realistic to push for an increase in the state's motor fuels tax, it
is sensible to ask lawmakers for higher motor vehicle registration
fees. For example, he said, an increase of $50 per car could generate
as much as $14 billion for transportation projects. The precise amount
would vary, depending upon how much of the money was spent outright,
and how much was leveraged with other pools of money.
"We need to start talking about it with our representatives and
senators, a revenue increase at this time," Houghton told the group
during a meeting at Texas Star conference center in Euless. "We have
bonded money. We have gone into debt. The Texas House and Senate have
graciously given us the $3 billion in bond financing we need. But
that's debt financing. We need revenue."
The state's gas tax of 20 cents per gallon hasn't changed in two
decades, and elected state leaders have repeatedly said there is
little chance of a tax increase in the coming years. Motorists pay
that tax as well as an 18.4-cent per gallon federal gas tax
everytime they visit the pumps.
The amount of motor vehicle registration that Texans pay annually
varies depending upon the type and age of vehicle they drive -- as
well as which county they live in. But a good rule of thumb, the
owner of a fairly new, typically-priced vehicle in a metropolitan
county currently pays about $70 a year. So an increase of $50 a year
would be huge.
But Houghton noted that the increase could be much smaller. It
would depend upon the wishes of legislators. New Texas
Department of Transportation executive director Phil Wilson also
addressed the crowd, and spoke about how his efforts to modernize
the agency. Several Fort Worth-Dallas asked questions of the
state leaders, and expressed concern that by allowing toll roads to
be built in North Texas they might miss out on some of the future
revenues that are dispersed statewide.
WHA Note: Harris County Judge Ed Emmett
writes in
Culture Map Houston
about the importance of efficiency in the movement of goods from our Port
of Houston to the markets of the US. He states the “…problem is
apparent. If we do not invest in transportation improvements, our area
will fail to reach its potential and might even wither. Unfortunately,
there is no single, easy answer.”
He continues, “All it takes is the same
visionary, can-do attitude that put us where we are today.”
TIME FOR TOUGH DECISIONS
Houston's future as a port depends on a good transportation network
BY HARRIS COUNTY JUDGE ED EMMETT in Culture Map Houston
01.17.12 | 10:37 am
Imagine Houston without the Ship Channel. If community leaders a century
ago had not pushed boldly for the inland waterway, Houston would not be
the petrochemical and industrial center that it is today.
Today, our region finds itself facing the need for another bold
initiative. That need is for a transportation network that will allow us
to realize our future potential as a dominant economic center for global
commerce.
Globalization is here to stay for the foreseeable future. Products will
continue to be imported from far-flung countries. And as currency values
fluctuate and other economic factors change, exports from the United
States could increase. In any case, there will be a huge quantity of
international trade coming to and from North America. The vast majority of
those products will be moved by oceangoing ships.
The future of Houston, Harris County and the surrounding region could be
one in which we are one of the focal points of ocean-going shipping in
this hemisphere. All it takes is the same visionary, can-do attitude that
put us where we are today.
Historically, there have been numerous seaport cities on any given coast,
but with the advent of “containerization,” the number of truly active
general-cargo ports has declined. Ports with facilities for loading and
unloading containers are competing for the increasing cargo volumes.
Containerization and technology-driven logistics have created an emphasis
on “just in time” delivery systems, in which shippers and receivers of
freight no longer maintain excessive warehouse inventories. Goods are now
“stored” in transit. This trend, combined with rising fuel and operational
costs, has pushed ocean carriers to build and use larger and larger ships.
These larger ships are best utilized by minimizing port calls and the time
spent in port.
In order for ever-larger ships to unload their containers in a timely
manner, the trucks and railroads serving the ports must operate
efficiently. Congestion is the biggest enemy of supply chain management.
So the future of Houston, Harris County and the surrounding region could
be one in which we are one of the focal points of ocean-going shipping in
this hemisphere. All it takes is the same visionary, can-do attitude that
put us where we are today.
Houston and the surrounding region are perfectly positioned to become “The
Gateway of North America.” Our location is central to the continent. With
the widening of the Panama Canal, ports in this area will no doubt
benefit. More importantly, though, as India, Africa and Brazil inevitably
become larger trading partners, ships carrying cargo from those areas will
come across the Atlantic Ocean and most likely make a single port call in
North America. We are perfectly positioned to be the favored port.
However, if that freight cannot be moved inland efficiently, we could be
bypassed by another port location, just as Felixstowe grew from nothing to
pass London, Liverpool and other historic ports in the United Kingdom.
The rail and highway network serving the Houston area is an amalgamation
that has developed over more than a century. The railroads, for the most
part, were built by individual private companies. Until the mid-20th
century, some railroads still provided passenger service, so key rail
lines still go through downtown.
As the railroad industry reacted to deregulation, companies merged to the
degree that we are left with only three railroads serving the region. And
those three railroads operate over lines that were laid out long before
Harris and surrounding counties had become an urban center with millions
of residents.
If that freight cannot be moved inland efficiently, we could be bypassed
by another port location, just as Felixstowe grew from nothing to pass
London, Liverpool and other historic ports in the United Kingdom.
The rail lines also were designed to serve retail customers and warehouses
– facilities that are now served almost exclusively by trucks. Of course,
the main rail routes were selected when there was no containerization,
intermodalism or even unit trains. As a result, the rail network is
desperately in need of redesign.
Unlike the privately funded railroad lines, the area highway system has
been completely funded by tax dollars and tolls. Decisions about where to
put highways have been made by public officials who answer to a political
process. That process gives extreme weight to the wants and desires of the
traveling public, both inter-city and commuters. Houston has grown up as
an automobile city. Indeed, the state of Texas is automobile-focused.
While the need for personal mobility in the region will continue to grow
with a burgeoning population, the need for a renewed freight
transportation network will be more important to economic vitality. In
these times of tight budgets, how do we meet our transportation needs?
All levels of government should make transportation funding a priority.
The federal government would do well to recognize that the Interstate
Highway System, an engineering marvel that greatly contributed to the
economic expansion of the United States, is in need of maintenance and
expansion to serve the demands of global markets. It is also time for the
federal government to do what is necessary to assist major ports with
their dredging needs to accommodate ever-larger ships, with the
development of rail infrastructure to increase intermodalism, and with new
emphasis on short sea shipping so that more freight can move via coastal
and inland waterways.
Unless the Legislature takes action, the Texas Department of
Transportation will barely have the funds to maintain the current system
and no money for the improvements necessary for our economic growth and
expanding population.
The state of Texas, long recognized as having the best highways in the
nation, finds itself in a real bind. The 20-cent gasoline tax has not been
raised since the mid-1990s, and it was never indexed for inflation. Over
the years, the Legislature has diverted significant portions of the
gasoline tax to purposes other than building roads. Unless the Legislature
takes action, the Texas Department of Transportation will barely have the
funds to maintain the current system and no money for the improvements
necessary for our economic growth and expanding population.
Local governments also are severely challenged in their efforts to avoid
crippling congestion and deteriorating roads. Harris County has stayed
ahead of other areas through the use of toll roads. Nobody likes to pay
tolls, but it is preferable to being trapped in ever-increasing traffic
congestion. The problem is apparent. If we do not invest in
transportation improvements, our area will fail to reach its potential and
might even wither. Unfortunately, there is no single, easy answer.
Governments must make transportation funding a priority because that will
allow economic activity that will, in turn, generate the taxes to fund
other needs. Public/private partnerships must be designed to bring
otherwise unavailable resources into the development of transportation
infrastructure of all types.
But above all else, the tax-paying public must understand the importance
of moving forward. When legislators and other public officials make bold,
tough decisions to assure our future, we should applaud them, just as we
applaud those leaders who decided to build a ship channel a century ago.
Greater west houston has made
historic strides in improvement to its transportation network, but an
improved funding outlook is essential for any further significant
progress.
The West Houston Association has worked for years and over several
sessions of the Texas Legislature to support increased transportation
funding for Texas roadways, the most critical point of leverage for an
improved outlook for new roadway design, engineering and construction.
As we entered the last, 82nd Session of the Legislature, the West Houston
Association published its recommended funding policies to elected and
appointed officials throughout the Houston metropolitan area.
That report is summarized below and you may read a copy at this link (PDF)
REDUCED FUNDING PROJECTIONS RESULTED IN
A DRASTIC REDUCTION OF TRANSPORTATION PROJECT PROGRAMMING FOR THE HOUSTON
METRO AREA--AFFECTING MAJOR GREATER WEST HOUSTON PROJECTS
The region's transportation plan (Regional
Transportation Plan or RTP) was reduced by $23 billion over the 10 years
it covers.
Read the
September 2010 summary comparison of the original to the revised plan at
this link (PDF).
TRANSPORTATION RELATED RESULTS OF THE
82nd TEXAS LEGISLATURE
The following summary is based upon a
report by ABHR LLP, Allen Boone
Humphries Robinson LP.
The Texas Department of Transportation
continued through the Sunset process in the 82 Legislature after receiving
an extension and continued review in the previous session. The
result in the 82nd was that TxDOT will continue to exist and undergo
sunset review again in four years. The bill (SB 1420) passed by the
Legislature imposed several internal controls on financing and financial
commitment. (Recommendations
for reorganizing TxDOT were made by the Sunset staff and Commission prior
to the 82nd Session. You may read the November, 2010 staff report at
this link.)
The bill also streamlined environmental
review; authorized limited use of design-build contracts for projects of
$50 million or more and limited the number of such contracts to three in
any fiscal year.
No new funding source was provided by the
Legislature but they did authorize under the adopted State budget an
additional $3 billion in bonds. (Funding from these bonds are now being
committed to projects throughout the state in a so-called Prop 12, 2
allocation. Houston's US 290 has received some of those funds.
A description is provided at this link.
Several projects around the state received
authorization to enter into Comprehensive Development Agreements (CDAs).
This was not a blanket authority. It is limited to both projects
selected by the Legislature and limited to the period of time projects are
eligible for CDAs. In the Houston area these projects were
authorized for CDAs: State Highway 99
(Grand Parkway); State Highway 249; State Highway 288; and
US Highway 290.
In other action, Local Primacy on Toll
Roads the Legislature passed SB 19 supports local agencies as the first
option to develop toll roads and confirms SB 792 passed in the 2007
legislature as it affects toll roads.
Also, Transportation Reinvestment Zones
were tweaked or cleaned up in HB 563
County assistance districts for
transportation improvements are made a possible option in SB 520.
An extensive archive on
transportation funding is available at this WHA link. |
