Tag: local road funding

BIC MATTERS – Governor Eric Holcomb to Speak at Road Funding Day Event

Posted on by admin_ici

TO: BIC Grassroots Network and Road Funding Partners
FROM: Vicki Kitchin
DATE: February 13, 2017

SUBJECT: BIC MATTERS – Governor Eric Holcomb to Speak at Road Funding Day Event

Road Funding Day February 21
We are pleased to announce that Governor Eric Holcomb will speak at our Road Funding Day briefing on February 21. Governor Holcomb caps an already high-profile list of speakers including Indiana House Speaker Brian Bosma, House Roads and Transportation Chairman Ed Soliday, Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Luke Kenley and INDOT Commissioner Joe McGuinness.

With more than 215 road funding advocates planning to attend, along with over 25 state legislators, this is an event you don’t want to miss. Register today.

Update on HB 1002
Since the House Ways and Means Committee amended HB 1002 last week, the fiscal analysis has changed. The bill now moves all of the sales tax collected on fuel to the highway accounts in the first year, meaning INDOT’s share of the new funding is greatly increased in FY18. You can find an updated fiscal analysis of HB 1002 here.

HB 1002 is now eligible for action by the full House. The process includes “Second Reading” where legislators have an opportunity to further amend the bill, followed by “Third Reading” where the House will vote on the entire bill as amended. Please contact your member in the House of Representatives and ask for support of HB 1002. Find your legislator here.

Thanks for your continued advocacy and your feedback from local town hall meetings. Your involvement is critical to our legislative success.

BIC Matters – This Week’s Town Hall Schedule and HB 1002 Update

Posted on by admin_ici

TO: BIC Grassroots Network
FROM: Vicki Kitchin, Executive Director
DATE: January 26, 2017

SUBJECT: BIC Matters – This Week’s Town Hall Schedule and HB 1002 Update

Much to update you on this week – we will be as succinct as possible.

Attend a Town Hall Meeting – Use this Updated Schedule to Find One in Your Area
Use this updated list of town hall meetings to find one in your area. Local legislators typically attend. Road funding advocates (specifically BIC members) need to attend these meetings to offer legislators encouragement and positive affirmation about HB 1002, the long-term road funding plan working its way through the House of Representatives. Keep in mind that opponents will attend these meetings so it’s critically important that supporters attend to counter their negative messaging. This week’s list includes Carmel, Jeffersonville, Shelbyville, Delphi, Kokomo, South Bend, Richmond, Fort Wayne, Rochester, Vincennes, Greensburg, Vevay, Frankfort, Columbus and Danville. Your mission: Attend and talk to your local legislator about why passage of HB 1002 is important and encourage them to support it. After you attend, send an email to vkitchin@buildindianacouncil.org so we can track what is happening in each legislator’s local community.

Coalition Toolbox
Our coalition has posted tools to a drop box account including Twitter graphics and other items you can use to promote the passage of HB 1002. We encourage you to use Twitter and Facebook to send positive messages about our effort. Also, follow BIC on Twitter at @BuildINCouncil.

Register for Road Funding Day at the Indiana State House
Over 60 people have signed up for the February 21, 2017 event. We will invite all legislators to attend the lunch portion of the program and we’ll all go to the Statehouse after lunch to talk with those legislators who could not attend the lunch. Sign up today at the Road Funding Day registration site.

House Roads Committee Passes Long-term Road Funding Bill
At the conclusion of about 6.5 hours of testimony yesterday, the House Roads and Transportation Committee passed HB 1002 on a vote of 8-5. It was nearly a party line vote with all but one Republican (Rep. Bob Morris – Fort Wayne) voting in favor of the bill, and all Democrats voting against. While this was a joint hearing with the Ways and Means Committee, only the Roads and Transportation Committee voted. Committee Chairman Ed Soliday presented the bill and talked about the years that he and the committee have studied this issue and said that now is the time to act. The committee did amend the bill including capping indexing at one cent per year after the initial tax increases. Commissioner Joe McGuinness and Chief of Staff Chris Kiefer testified for INDOT. They clearly illustrated the funding shortages that INDOT faces if additional funding is not approved this year. Testifying from BIC were Jeff Mulzer of Mulzer Crushed Stone and J.H. Rudolph & Co., John Brand of Butler, Fairman & Seufert and BIC lobbyist Dennis Faulkenberg of APPIAN. By BIC’s count, 34 testifiers supported the bill while six were opposed. Supporters included truckers, mayors, commissioners, county highway engineers, chambers, manufacturers, logistic companies, labor and others. Opponents were conservative anti-tax groups.

A big THANK YOU to Chairman Soliday and the members of the Roads and Transportation Committee who voted in favor of HB 1002. Also, THANK YOU to all the BIC member companies who attended the hearing. We all wore “Road Funding Yes!” stickers and filled the House chamber at the beginning of the hearing.

HB 1002 will now be recommitted to the House Ways and Means Committee. We don’t know yet when Chairman Tim Brown will hear the bill. Stay tuned.

INDOT BUDGET HEARING
On Tuesday, INDOT testified at a House Ways and Means Committee hearing about their budget for the upcoming biennium. Commissioner Joe McGuinness, CFO Dan Brassard and COS Chris Kiefer presented the budget and answered committee questions. It’s important to note that their presentation was based on known revenues at this time, rather than a presumption that the legislature will approve additional funding in this legislative session.

That’s it for this week. Keep us posted on what you’re hearing out there.

BIC Matters – Register Now for Road Funding Day at the Indiana Statehouse

Posted on by admin_ici

ROAD FUNDING DAY AT THE INDIANA STATEHOUSE
Tuesday, February 21, 2017
Indianapolis Marriott Downtown

CALL TO ACTION
Now more than ever, we need to urge legislators to enact a long-term road funding plan that will keep roads and bridges safe, boost economic development and help create Hoosier jobs.

SCHEDULE
10:00 to 10:30 a.m. — Registration and Networking
10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. — Legislative Briefing
12:00 to 1:30 p.m. — Road Funding Luncheon with Legislators
1:30 to 4:00 p.m. — Legislator Visits at the Statehouse (enter through the west doors)

REGISTRATION
While there’s no fee to participate, please RSVP, so we can prep for the event and assist you in making connections with your elected officials. Register here.

ROAD FUNDING PARTNERS
Check out the registration site for a list of all the sponsoring organizations, including all of the BIC member associations.

SIGN UP TODAY
In the near future, our coalition will send an invitation to all state legislators inviting them to attend the lunch portion of the program. Be sure to talk with your local legislators and local government officials and encourage them to register.

CALL BIC IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS
(317) 634-4774

INDOT to Host City, Town and County Officials for Local Road and Bridge Funding Meetings

Posted on by Andria Hine
INDOT News Release 05/18/2016

Agency to Provide Information, Answer Questions on New Funding for Local Roads

The Indiana Department of Transportation will host six regional meetings for city, town and county officials to detail new funding opportunities for local roads and bridges through recent legislation.

In March 2016, Governor Mike Pence signed into law House Enrolled Act 1001 and Senate Enrolled Act 67, which provide more than $1.2 billion in new funding for road and bridge preservation across Indiana, much of which is targeted at improving local roads and bridges.

Cities, towns and counties have received $430 million in Local Option Income Tax distributions that can be used to improve local roads and bridges. In addition, as part of HEA1001, INDOT is launching a Local Road and Bridge Matching Grant Fund that provides $186 million in match funding over the next two years to local governments that submit qualifying road and bridge projects. The new funding is in addition to the more than $200 million that INDOT provides to cities, towns and counties each year through the agency’s federal-aid program.

 INDOT’s regional meetings will provide details on how to access new funding and answer questions. Dates, times, and locations for meetings are listed below in the local time zone:

  • May 23 – INDOT Fort Wayne District Office, 5333 Hatfield Road, Fort Wayne, IN 46808

    Morning Session: 10 a.m.-11:30 a.m. Afternoon Session: 1 p.m.-2:30 p.m.

  • May 24 – Ivy Tech Crawfordsville Campus, 2325 Phil Ward Blvd, Crawfordsville, IN 47933

    Morning Session: 10 a.m.-11:30 a.m. Afternoon Session: 1 p.m.-2:30 p.m.

  • May 25 – INDOT Vincennes District Office , 3650 South U.S. 41, Vincennes, IN 47591

    Morning Session: 10 a.m.-11:30 a.m. Afternoon Session: 1 p.m.-2:30 p.m.

  • May 26 – INDOT Greenfield District Office, 32 S. Broadway Street, Greenfield, IN 46140

    Morning Session: 10 a.m.-11:30 a.m. Afternoon Session: 1 p.m.-2:30 p.m.

  • May 27 – INDOT Seymour District Office, 185 Agrico Lane, Seymour, IN 47274

    Morning Session: 10 a.m.-11:30 a.m. Afternoon Session: 1 p.m.-2:30 p.m.

  • May 31 – INDOT LaPorte District Office, 315 E. Boyd Blvd, LaPorte, IN 46350

    Morning Session: 10 a.m.-11:30 a.m. Afternoon Session: 1 p.m.-2:30 p.m.

City, town and county officials should plan to attend a session near them to learn about projects eligible for funding, how to submit projects for matching funds, deadlines for project submissions, projected timelines for distributing funds, and developing an asset-management plan.