March 5, 2010
Governor's transportation plan meets resistance
Legislation proposed by Gov. Sonny Perdue, calling for a referendum on a 1 percent sales tax for transportation projects in each of 12 special districts across the state, is under consideration in the House Transportation Committee.
While there is support for the regional approach to increased funding for transportation, there is also concern about several provisions in HB 1218. Some lawmakers object to its top-down policy, with the state dictating the makeup of the regions rather than counties voluntarily coming together to form their own regions and having more local control.
Also, the governor's bill would not call for the referendum until 2012, meaning Georgia's transportation needs would have to wait an additional two years for a long-overdue funding solution.
A Transportation subcommittee has already made several changes to the legislation, which would:
~ Increase the duration for the special sales tax from eight years to 10 years.
~ Identify the state Department of Transportation as the fiscal agent for transportation funding instead of the State Road and Tollway Authority.
~ Cancel the tax referendum in any region where local officials fail to agree on a list of projects, rather than ceding that authority to the state planning director.
~ Prevent MARTA from increasing salaries with additional operating funds it receives from a three-year suspension of a rule that restricts the agency's use of sales tax revenues for operation expenses.
The legislation's sponsor said the governor would likely veto any version of the bill that allows counties or regions to opt out of putting the sales tax referendum before the voters. The governor and legislative leaders have failed to agree on transportation funding legislation in the previous two sessions of the General Assembly.
Higher Education Budget: House and Senate Appropriations Committee members just completed two weeks of hearings on the annual state budget for fiscal year 2011, for the purpose of considering more cuts to the $18.2 billion spending plan proposed by Gov. Sonny Perdue. The most controversial budget proposal is a recommendation to slash another $300 million from Georgia's public colleges and universities. Having already cut $380 million from the University System budget since 2008, further deep reductions would be painful for college students, faculty and staff and the states economy. Under the proposal, 4,000 faculty and staff members would be laid off and tens of thousands of students would be affected by the closing of satellite campuses, elimination of certain majors, shorter hours at libraries and student centers and lower caps on enrollment among the various schools. Georgia Gwinnett College would lose $2.7 million in funding and 32 staff positions. Enrollment would be capped at 3,000, affecting 2,000 students. Statewide, a 35 percent student tuition increase is on the table, and elimination of the Georgia 4-H program has been suggested. I am strongly opposed to these cuts, which would reverse the great progress our state has made the past 20 years in expanding opportunities for students all over the state to get a college education.
Water Management: The House Natural Resources & Environment Committee has approved water management legislation that calls for some limited conservation measures for the construction industry and power utilities. The proposal would require builders to include low-flow plumbing devices in all new structures and would require large industrial and commercial buildings to deploy more efficient chillers and water cooling towers as part of their heating and air conditioning systems. HB 1094 also would allow outdoor watering only between the hours of 4 p.m. and 10 a.m., with exemptions for farmers, food gardens, private well owners, nurseries, golf courses and athletic fields. This has the potential to save millions of gallons of water during a time of day when as much as half could be lost to evaporation. The bill now awaits a vote on the House floor.
Tobacco Tax Support: While dealing with the state's historic budget crisis, lawmakers are considering a variety of revenue enhancements. HB 39, which proposes a $1 per pack increase in the excise tax on cigarettes, has been stuck in committee since the beginning of the 2009 legislative session. But a recent poll indicated that 73 percent of Georgians support a tobacco tax increase, which would, according to its sponsors, raise about $350 million a year in revenue and save $1.8 billion in tobacco-related health care costs by discouraging smoking.
GEFA Loan Sell-Off: The Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA) is apparently moving forward on Gov. Perdue's proposal to sell off a loan portfolio package to investors, even though the General Assembly has yet to even vote on the plan. GEFA officials released a request for proposal to financial underwriters who would be interested in packaging the state loans as a security to be sold to investors. The governor's version of the fiscal year 2011 budget includes $288 million from the loan portfolio sale, but if the loans are sold to Wall Street investors, there will be almost no funds available to make future water and sewer loans. Georgia's city and county governments depend on the GEFA fund as a source for financing infrastructure improvements.
