Toll Road bill has wiggle room

INDIANAPOLIS | A 75-year lease of the Indiana Toll Road might net northern Indiana more than the 34 percent share the state has promised so far, Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels said Thursday.

The announcement came at a Statehouse news conference where nearly three dozen Indiana mayors -- including Dan Klein of Crown Point and Jon Costas of Valparaiso -- pledged support for Major Moves, the governor's 10-year, $10.6 billion transportation plan.

The administration is counting on substantial toll increases and a private lease of the Toll Road to fund a $2.8 billion portion of Major Moves.

But Northwest Indiana lawmakers argue that a third of the spoils isn't enough for Lake, Porter and the remaining five counties that surround the Toll Road.

Most of those lawmakers say they're unwilling to support legislation the governor needs to authorize the deal without first securing a greater share for their toll-paying constituents.

"The Toll Road counties have 20 percent of the population of the state. As the bill is written, they'd get 34 percent of the money. That reflects every penny attributable to any toll paid by any Hoosier," Daniels said.

"We're very sensitive to the fact that a lot of the value in Major Moves would come from a Toll Road lease. We've tried to reflect that in a disproportionate investment of the funds in that area, and we can all visit together about whether 34 (percent) versus 20 percent or something higher is the right number, but we thought it was a fair starting point."

The governor also said he would consider paring back portions of the legislation that would allow the administration to privatize state airports, bridges and freight facilities without first asking the Legislature.

"It had never really been in our contemplation to take this concept into some of the areas that people have asked about," Daniels said.

"And if it would make some folks feel better to clarify that, they should bring us an amendment."

Offers to operate the 157-mile roadway are due today.

Daniels said he believes at least one bidder will be a domestic company, and other offers will include American investors. Some Democrats have attacked the concept of foreign control.

"The money's all green," Daniels quipped. "The employees will all be Hoosiers."

The governor estimates that Major Moves will create more than 130,000 jobs.

"We know that local roads and infrastructure are essential, and the same is true for the entire state," said Valparaiso's Mayor Costas.

Transportation improvements, including the $100 million promised for the Regional Development Authority, will unlock the distribution and warehousing potential of Northwest Indiana, he said.

Crown Point's Mayor Klein, meanwhile, said the investment promised for the region is worth the higher tolls that commuters will face.

"I commend the governor for thinking out of the box," Klein said. "We're next to Chicago. Mayor Daley, of course, did the same thing with the Skyway."

Costas and Klein, both Republicans, shrugged off observations that only a few of the mayors gathered in the governor's office were Democrats.

"I don't care if you're a Democrat, Republican or Independent, it's hard to not get behind this," Klein said.

Portage Mayor Doug Olson and Gary Mayor Scott King did not attend, but were listed as supporting Major Moves.

"I'm endorsing the concept of it, but you know that the devil's always in the details," King said by phone.

"It's not precisely the same, but it's very similar to what my friend and colleague Mayor Daley did with the Skyway."

King said there were some discussions about including the Gary/Chicago International Airport in the Skyway lease Chicago finalized in 2004, but state law did not permit such an arrangement.