By Doug La Rocque
More than 700 local highway superintendents and their supporters gathered in the State capital in their quest for more Consolidated Highway Improvement Program funds (CHIPs) and bridge repair monies. This gathering has become an annual event.
[private]This year, however, the superintendents took a different approach. In years past, the highway supers’ pleas were seen as a downstate versus upstate struggle for funding. According to Grafton’s Herb Hasbrouck, this year they all took a more united approach, asking that a straight CHIPs formula be applied to all localities. Hasbrouck said, “I think this year the Governor realizes that to build a better state you have to have a good infrastructure first.” Berlin’s Jim Winn said the highway superintendents group is “pretty confident that there will be an increase in the CHIPs money and it will be allocated to the CHIPs account, not a separate emergency fund that the Governor could pull back. Winn said, “there is not enough money available for local roads with the two percent tax cap – everybody is running behind.” He felt that if the Governor is going to restrain local taxation, he needs to be more generous with state aid so the towns can continue to keep the roads in good shape.
A recent change in the way New York pays these funds to localities, on a reimbursement basis, with the money often not coming until later in the year, has also put a strain on town highway budgets.
Looking Toward A Long Term Funding Plan
For the first time since 2009, Governor Cuomo is proposing a five-year highway plan, which would require legislative approval. Hasbrouck said having a long term commitment is essential for planning. The Highway Association is calling for $690 million dollars for the next four state fiscal years, an increase of more than $200 million over the Governor’s proposal. The Governor’s plan also includes a five-year $1-billion-dollar program for New York bridges to be split equally between state and local projects.
There was bi-partisan support for the highway chiefs from the area’s contingent of Senators and Assembly members. Senator Kathy Marchione told a press conference at the capital that she “will advocate for infrastructure funding parity for upstate as part of the 2016-17 state budget. Marchione chairs the Senate’s Local Government Committee. Hasbrouck said his group “filled the offices of Senator Marchione and Assemblymen Steve McLaughlin and John McDonald. The superintendents should know more about the success of their efforts in a couple of weeks. The annual state budget is due by April 1. [/private]