BY PATRICK GUINANE, Times of Northwest Indiana
Pguinane@nwitimes.com
INDIANAPOLIS | The governor's $3.85 billion plan to lease the Indiana Toll Road underwent a second major facelift Thursday, with senators placing severe restrictions on how the money could be spent.
The changes slashed funding for the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority in favor of grants to individual counties.
"That's not the attitude that we were trying to develop with RDA," said Sen. Earline Rogers, D-Gary. "What we were trying to do with the RDA was to build a sense of regionalism."
Originally promised $100 million over 10 years, the RDA would get just $20 million under the present plan. Porter County would see another $25 million for economic development and Lake County would get $15 million. Supporters based the uneven distribution on a belief that more RDA money will be spent in Lake County, which pays $14 million a year in local matching funds, or four times Porter County's annual contribution.
The other five counties in the Toll Road corridor - LaPorte, St. Joseph, Elkhart, LaGrange and Steuben - each would get $30 million for economic development.
"I think we should have done better, since we're contributing our own money and no one else is," Sen. Frank Mrvan, D-Hammond, said of the economic development dollars.
"Nobody lost anything today," Gov. Mitch Daniels said of the RDA money. "It was just one step in a multi-step process."
Daniels remarks came at a news conference where he announced that a least one Democrat, Sen. Glenn Howard, of Indianapolis, plans to vote for the highway plan.
Mrvan, meanwhile, said Thursday's changes made him more likely to vote "No." He's not sure that matters in the Senate, where Republicans hold a 33-17 advantage.
"I think its a pretty foregone conclusion that they have the votes," he said.
The Senate overhaul did little to change the scope of the Toll Road lease, instead focusing on how the state will spend the $3.85 billion a Spanish-Australian consortium has offered for the right to operate the road and collect tolls for the next 75 years.
The newest plan would set aside $400 million in a "Next Generation" trust fund that cannot be touched until its balance swells past $1 billion. Once that occurs, the state could skim off annual interest to pay for future transportation projects.
"The escrow thing, I think, is very responsible," said Sen. Vic Heinold, R-Kouts. "That's one thing that I've worked real hard to keep."
Senators also eliminated Daniels' ability to privatize other roads and bridges, including his plan to build a tollway connecting Indianapolis and Evansville. The changes also would force Daniels to get General Assembly approval in future years before spending lease proceeds.
The legislation, House Bill 1008, appears headed to special committee where a small group of lawmakers hammer out House and Senate differences.
The Republican-controlled House approved a vastly different version last month on a 52-47 party line vote. Senators spiked a 10-year toll freeze dreamed up by House Republicans. The new version, however, would allow commuters to deduct up to $300 in tolls from annual state income taxes.