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 The newly appointed Director of the Arizona Department of Transportation briefed county supervisors on the challenges facing ADOT at CSA's April Board of Directors meeting in Phoenix on Thursday. John Halikowski told the Board that the Department, like all Arizona agencies, was doing its best to manage millions of dollars in cuts handed down by the legislature, but to truly address Arizona's transportation needs, changes in governance and financing would be necessary. Halikowski was appointed by Governor Brewer to head ADOT last month. Before being named to lead ADOT, Halikowski was a longstanding Director of Research and Transportation Analyst for the Arizona House of Representatives.
Halikowski noted that due to fund sweeps and declines in revenue sources like Vehicle License Tax, the agency was experiencing a serious cash flow problem. "There's very little bonding capacity left in our highway fund," commented Mr. Halikowski. He also pointed out that despite reductions in its administrative and operations budgets, ADOT is challenged with operating the agency which collects more money for the state than any other, except the Department of Revenue-last year, ADOT collected over $1 billion in VLT.
Mr. Halikowski pointed to the historical sweeps that have occurred over time to help balance the state's budget. In the first FY09 fix alone, $295 million was used to help balance the state's budget. Included in those cuts were:
HURF/SHF to DPS $ 87M
VLT Diversions $ 66M
Aviation Fund $ 22M
MVD/Other Funds $ 16M
STAN $ 104M
TOTAL $ 295M
Throughout the briefing, Mr. Halikowski commented that his goals as the next Director of ADOT will be to return the organization to its core function, to think creatively about funding transportation in the state and to develop intergovernmental relationships between the state and the political subdivisions. "Strengthening regional relationships gives us clout--both here and in Washington, DC" said Halikowski.
 The Arizona Association of County Engineers released their 5th Arizona Roadway Needs Study, which assesses the condition of Arizona's roads and determines the amount of funding needed to keep the state's roadways in good condition. The report concludes that the needs of the road system will significantly outpace estimates of available funding in the next ten years.
The report indicates that only $3.56 billion in funding will be available for roadway maintenance in the next decade from both Highway User Revenue Fund (HURF) and VLT funds. To assess the state's roadway needs, the report breaks expenditures down into four categories, from the most basic to the most inclusive. In the next ten years, the study predicts the state's roads will need:
Combined, these predictions total over $11 billion. The study also argues that it is less expensive to maintain the state's roads consistently than to reconstruct them after their condition is allowed to deteriorate. It cites that maintaining a road costs only $20,000 per lane mile, while reconstruction costs $330,000 per lane mile.
To view the complete Arizona Roadway Needs Study, click here.
Legislators continued closed door negotiations on the FY10 budget this week, but showed no visible signs of progress. Legislative leadership indicated they had garnered enough support to move a budget proposal through the Appropriations committees, but would not produce a budget publicly until they were certain they had enough votes to the clear the chamber's floor.
In response to the backlash against the choices executive agencies have made in implementing lump sum reductions in the FY09 budget (for example, cuts to county Prop 204 Hold Harmless funding reduced in the AHCCCS budget) , some lawmakers are rumored to be leaning towards more specific reductions to individual programs, as opposed to leaving cuts at the agency's discretion.
CSA has released revised analyses of county related impacts in the FY09 enacted and FY10 proposed budgets. To view those analyses, click the link for FY09 or FY10.
Arizona Public Service (APS) has announced that it will hold a Local Government Energy Efficiency Grant Workshop. This workshop will assist local government personnel in identifying and applying for federal Energy Efficiency Block Grants (EEBG).
The EEBG program was initiated in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), passed earlier this year. The program provides grants to states and local governments for projects relating to renewable energy and energy efficiency. Grants could be used to reduce fossil fuel emissions and overall energy consumption, through the development of energy conservation strategies, installing renewable energy technology on government building, or other types of projects.
The workshop will be held on May 6, 2009 from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the Black Canyon Conference Center at 9440 N 25th Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85021.
The workshop is free, but registration is required. Click here to register.
To view the Department Of Energy's Frequently Asked Questions about the EEBG program, click here. The legislature heard the following bills with county impact this week:
HB 2011: provisional community college districts; bonding (Konopnicki) passed House Committee of the Whole.
HB 2268: county and municipal budgets (Crump) passed House Committee of the Whole.
HB 2331: federal immigration law; enforcement (Boone) passed House Committee of the Whole.
The legislature is not yet scheduled to hear any county related bills next week. The Rules agenda had not yet been posted at press time.
Check the legislative calendar at www.azleg.gov/alistoday.asp for updated schedules, as the House may release a COW or floor calendar later in the week.
Most committees are not meeting, although a few House and Senate standing committees continue to hear informational and program presentations. Small group meetings on the FY10 budget are expected to continue.
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County Supervisors Association of Arizona
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