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2015 SESSION

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HB 1887 Commonwealth Transportation Board; membership, funding, updates annual reporting, and allocations.

Introduced by: S. Chris Jones | all patrons    ...    notes | add to my profiles

SUMMARY AS PASSED: (all summaries)

Transportation funding; formula, reporting, and allocations. Removes the Executive Director of the Virginia Port Authority from the Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) and makes the members of the CTB subject to removal by the Governor for malfeasance, misfeasance, incompetence, misconduct, neglect of duty, absenteeism, conflicts of interest, failure to carry out the policies of the Commonwealth, or refusal to carry out a lawful directive of the Governor. Both provisions would become effective July 1, 2016.

The bill updates the required content for the annual report of the Commissioner of Highways made to the Governor and the General Assembly and adds that such report be submitted to the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission and the CTB. The report must include the condition of existing transportation assets; the methodology used to determine maintenance and state of good repair needs; performance targets and outcomes; a listing of prioritized pavement and bridge projects based on the priority ranking system; VDOT strategies for improving the safety, security, and operations of highways; and a review of VDOT's collaboration with the private sector in delivering services.

The bill requires the CTB to develop a priority ranking system for structurally deficient bridges and deteriorated pavements.

The bill replaces the current $500 million annual allocation made by the CTB and its corresponding formula and the old 40-30-30 allocation formula to the primary, secondary, and urban highways with a new formula that allocates 45% of funds to the newly established state of good repair purposes, 27.5% to the newly established high-priority projects program, and 27.5% to the highway construction district grant programs. The new formula will take effect beginning in fiscal year 2021 but some unallocated dollars will flow through the new formula during a transition period before 2020.

The bill reallocates the interest, dividends, and appreciation that currently accrue to the Transportation Trust Fund and Highway Maintenance and Operating Fund: two-thirds of such current accruals to the Virginia Transportation Infrastructure Bank and one-third of such accruals to the Transportation Partnership Opportunity Fund. The bill also excludes grants from other financing, thereby removing the ability of a governmental entity to apply for a grant. The bill allows the CTB to make transfers from the Toll Facilities Revolving Account to the Virginia Transportation Infrastructure Bank.

Further, the bill reallocates recordation tax revenues from the Highway Maintenance and Operating Fund to the Commonwealth Transit Capital Fund and reallocates 3.7% of fuels tax revenues from the Transportation Trust Fund and divides it between the Commonwealth Mass Transit Fund and the Commonwealth Transit Capital Fund. These provisions become effective July 1, 2016, and would revert if Virginia began collecting sales tax from remote retailers pursuant to Congress's passage of the Marketplace Fairness Act. The bill authorizes the Department of Rail and Public Transportation to enter into agreements not to exceed 20 years under the Public-Private Transportation Act to improve passenger rail service with private entities that finance improvements in return for annual payments.


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