Lawmakers leery over highway projects bond plan

Governor's proposal burdens next generation, legislators maintain

Topeka ? Opposition to Gov. Kathleen Sebelius’ $465 million transportation bond plan intensified Thursday, with the Senate’s top Republican and even some of the governor’s fellow Democrats expressing reservations.

Sebelius proposed the bonds as a way to shore up the 10-year, $13 billion transportation program begun by the state in 1999 and to avoid canceling highway projects already promised to some communities.

But Senate President Dave Kerr said Thursday the plan puts too great a financial burden on “the next generation” — the same concern expressed a day earlier by the chairmen of the Senate and House Transportation committees.

Kerr noted that the new debt would be added to the nearly $1 billion in transportation bonds authorized in 1999. In that year, legislators rejected proposals to permit more than $1 billion in bonds.

“Our thinking at that time was that we didn’t want to push that much of a financial burden to future generations,” said Kerr, R-Hutchinson.

Kerr’s comments followed a briefing by Transportation Secretary Deb Miller to the Senate Ways and Means Committee. Miller said alternatives to the proposed bonds included taking money from education and other programs or increasing taxes and fees.

“I don’t think anybody likes any of the options too much,” Miller told Kerr. “I think this is the least onerous.”

Even Democrats seemed cool to the governor’s proposal, however.

“I have some of the same concerns” as Kerr, Sen. Henry Helgerson, D-Wichita, told Miller.

Sen. Christine Downey, D-Newton, questioned how actively the administration had looked for other alternatives.

Legislators have diverted $260 million in general tax revenue from transportation projects to other government operations over the past two years to help cope with budget shortages.

Sebelius has proposed diverting an additional $202 million during the fiscal year that starts July 1 from transportation to education, social services and general government.

Some highway projects will be canceled unless the state makes up for those losses, Miller said Thursday.