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League urges cities to pass resolution seeking comprehensive transportation funding Page 1 of 2 [0' LEAGUEyr i MINNESOTA CITIES CITIES BULLETIN ONLINE EDi TION League urges cities to pass resolution seeking comprehensive transportation funding Issue 3 Published: February 13, 2008 Cities cautioned about Seifert resolution By Anne Finn The League of Minnesota Cities is urging cities to adopt resolutions calling for the Minnesota Legislature to pass and Gov. Pawlenty to sign- -or allow to become law without his signature —a permanent increase in dedicated funding for state and local road, bridge, and transit systems in Greater Minnesota and the Metropolitan Area. View the sample resoll.ution (Word). Last week, many city officials received a copy of a resolution from House Minority Leader Marty Seifert, R- Marshall, seeking support for the Governor's bonding proposal, which includes $225 million for local bridges and $30 million for local roads. Although the Governor's bonding proposal, which is supported by the Seifert resolution, addresses a piece of the overall transportation funding need in the state, it is not a long -term, comprehensive solution for state and local nsportation infrastructure needs. The League cautions city officials that adopting the Seifert resolution as presented may send a message that bonding alone represents an adequate response to transportation funding needs. The League's resolution acknowledges and supports a more comprehensive approach to transportation funding, which includes, but is not limited to, bonding. Given the importance of transportation funding and the likelihood that this will be a prominent issue in the 2008 legislative session, the League urges your city to pass this or a substantially similar resolution and to convey that support to your legislators. Specifically, the League's resolution supports the following: • An increase in the gas tax. • Indexing of the gas tax, provided there is a limit on how much the tax can be increased for inflation in a given amount of time. • Increases in vehicle registration taxes (a.k,a. license tab fees). • Trunk highway bonding, provided the Legislature implements reasonable restrictions on the amount of debt service the state will incur and provided the Legislature appropriates funding to assist with local costs related to projects funded with trunk highway bonds. • General obligation bonding for local roads and bridges, particularly for roads of regional significance and to assist with local cost participation requirements pertaining to trunk highway projects. • Sales tax exemptions for state and local transportation construction projects. • New local funding tools, such as local option sales tax authority or authority to establish street improvement districts. maximize the impact of this resolution, please send copies of your adopted council resolution to: • Gov. Pawlenty: Office of the Governor, 130 State Capitol, 75 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, MN http: / /www.Imne.org/ bulletin /story.cfm ?id= 1687 &title_id =1 2/15/2008 1