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On the morning of July 3, the Governor signed into law the bipartisan State Budget, which was supported by Republicans and Democrats in both the Senate and the Assembly. I was happy to see the Governor quickly sign our budget into law with fewer vetoes than usual. This is a budget that members of both parties can celebrate.
One of the biggest areas of investment in this budget was in our roads and bridges. I have always been a strong supporter of fixing our local roads. This budget includes $1.3 billion to upgrade roads and bridges across the state, more than the Governor proposed in his budget. We did this by using our one-time surplus to pay cash for projects, relying less on bonding and keeping fees on taxpayers lower than the Governor’s proposal.
This money will help continue work on our roads that are most in need of repair, keep all state projects on track, provide General Transportation Aid (GTA) increases to all local governments, and increase routine maintenance to assist with plowing roads in the winter and making minor fixes. Our budget action also restored the Governor’s veto of a GTA increase for towns in the last budget. While cities and villages received their inflationary increase in the last budget, the Governor’s veto unfairly singled out towns and put them at a disadvantage. In this year’s budget we corrected that wrong and restored fair funding to our towns.
We also renewed the popular Ag Road Improvement Program (ARIP) at $150 million and Local Road Improvement Program (LRIP) at $100 million. These programs have helped communities in every county in the 17th Senate District make significant improvements to the roads we travel and use to transport goods. In the last budget, we allocated funds to survey every local bridge and culvert that was under 20 feet long in the state. In this budget, we set aside a portion of ARIP funds to begin upgrading the bridges and culverts that were deemed to be in the worst condition according to that survey.
The budget also introduces creative ways to increase funding for the state’s segregated transportation account. The primary revenue source for the transportation fund is the state’s gas tax. Since no one wants to pay more at the pump, we looked for alternative ways to keep up our efforts to build quality roads. For example, we introduced retro and blackout license plates that can be purchased for a slightly higher price than standard license plates.
While I’m proud of what we accomplished, I was disappointed that funding for a specific road was vetoed – County Road C in Iowa County. This road runs along the Wisconsin River and is important to major tourist destinations in Iowa County such as Taliesin, Tower Hill State Park, American Player’s Theater, and House on the Rock Resort. Unfortunately, the Governor vetoed funding to help Iowa County fix this road, which is falling into the Wisconsin River.
Everyone in Wisconsin can agree on the importance of quality roads. No matter what political party you support, we all need safe roads for travel. A significant investment in our state’s infrastructure is just one of the great things to come out of our bipartisan state budget.
If you need assistance with any state-related matters, please call my team at the State Capitol – 608-266-0703 – or email me – Sen.Marklein@legis.wisconsin.gov. My team is ready and willing to help navigate your state government, clear obstacles, and receive your input.
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