The Senate Transportation Committee voted to move S.B. 1 (Rafferty, R-Montgomery) to the floor of the Senate on Tuesday. The bill, which could provide up to $2.5 billion annually in spending on transportation projects, could be voted on as early as June.
The proposal includes the major recommendations made by the Governor’s Transportation Funding Advisory Commission. The plan would raise revenues by adjusting vehicle and driver fees for inflation, surcharging fines for drivers who violate traffic laws, uncapping the Oil Company Franchise Tax over three years, and modernizing many PennDOT services.
All revenue generated will be dedicated specifically to transportation projects in the commonwealth. The last increase in transportation taxes or fees in Pennsylvania was in 1997.
It is believed that Pennsylvania has more structurally deficient bridges than any other state in the nation, and 23 percent of its 44,000 miles of state-owned roads are in poor condition. Of those 44,000 miles of state-owned roads, 9,000 miles are considered in poor condition.
S.B. 1, “The Bridge to Pennsylvania’s Future” news release, chart and stakeholder list: http://goo.gl/qFRJe
Read the bill here: http://goo.gl/KXMQv