"Property Taxes-Uniform Fees and Certified Tax Rate," be added to the list since it is transportation-
related.
3. Discussion of Priority Study Items for the 1998 Interim _ Ben Christensen, Research Analyst, OLRGC, briefed the committee on possible study items for the upcoming interim period.
He distributed a handout titled, "Utah Tomorrow and Interim Committee Prioritization." He
suggested that the handout be considered to assist members of the committee in selecting study
items. Chair Dillree recommended that each member choose four topics and return their prioritized
choices to the staff. She said the results would be tabulated and a request made to the Legislative
Management Committee based on the survey.
4. I-15 Reconstruction/Centennial Highway Fund Update - Federal Funding Status _ Thomas R. Warne, Utah Department of Transportation, (UDOT), gave an update on the progress of
I-15. He said UDOT is ahead of schedule and is under budget. He said that last month the State
Transportation Commission made available $1.5 million from the state infrastructure bank, which
is money set aside for state or local communities to borrow in order to advance important projects
within their jurisdictions.
Mr. Warne said that the U. S. Senate and the House are in the process of appointing members
to the conference committee to resolve differences in the two versions of the new six-year
transportation funding bill. Both versions provide substantial increases in funding for Utah
transportation projects.
5. Highway Jurisdiction and Funding _ Dee Larsen, OLRGC, briefed the committee on two bills - S.B. 176, "Highway Jurisdiction and Funding," and S.C.R. 6, "Highway Transfer Process
Resolution." Ben Christensen, OLRGC, discussed a handout titled, "Highway Jurisdiction and
Funding Maps."
Thomas R. Warne, UDOT, gave a slide presentation pertaining to the issue of highway
jurisdiction and funding. He expressed concern that the transfer of highways between jurisdictions
may not be a good idea if it costs less but will decrease efficiency or level of service.
Clint Topham, UDOT, also provided comments on the funding issue.
Richard Manser, UDOT, Statewide Planning, provided names of members of the two
S.C.R. 6 committees _ the technical group and the funding group.
Chair Dillree said the state would not insist that counties or cities take roads without funding
to maintain them.
Brent Gardner, Utah Association of Counties, said his office would make arrangements for
members to visit highway areas of interest in the state. He expressed concern about how many miles
of highway would be transferred, how they would be transferred, and how the transfer would be
funded. He also said that if adequate funding is not provided, county officials' only recourse would
be to raise property taxes in order to raise funds for county road maintenance, otherwise, the roads
would go without maintenance.
Clyde Naylor, Director, Utah County Public Works, distributed a handout titled, "Counties
Jurisdictional Transfer Subcommittee of The Joint Highway Committee - Principles," and
recommended that any transfers should be based on certain principles outlined in the handout. He
also said that the handout includes recommended principles to maintain highway network integrity.
Lee King, City Administrator, Midvale City, Utah League of Cities and Towns, agreed with
the comments of the previous presenters. He suggested that the process for handling unfunded
capital projects, not currently on the State Transportation Improvement Plan, be addressed along
with the procedure that the state would use to give aid to the local communities in case of a
catastrophic failure.
Wilbur R. Jefferies, Wasatch Front Regional Council, said that in the interest of time, he
concurred with the statements made by the others and suggested that trip reduction management be
considered for discussion in the process.
Richard Thorn, Associated General Contractors, proposed that the private sector be included
in the decision process of roadway jurisdiction and funding.
Garth Beckstead, Utah Public Employees Association, said that their members are watching
this issue carefully and anticipate involvement in the future.
6. Other Committee Business _ Chair Dillree informed the committee that there would be a work session to go over issues on the jurisdictional transfers in the near future.
7. Adjourn _
MOTION: Rep. Adair moved to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed unanimously at 11:41 a.m. with Sen. Tanner and Rep. Allen absent for the vote.