CA: Time for state to honor the intent of Prop. 42

OC Register ^ | 9/6/04 | Gregory T. Winterbottom / OCTA

[NormsRevenge]

If you only read the headlines, it looks like the state of California has done quite a bit to help advance local transportation projects ["O.C. traffic gets help," Front Page, Aug. 6]. But when you dig a little deeper, a much different story emerges.

Though the state has allocated funding for a handful of projects in recent months, including $45 million for improvements on the Garden Grove (22) Freeway and $23 million for the Santa Ana (5) Freeway, the transportation outlook is not nearly as rosy as it might seem.

In 2002, California voters approved Proposition 42, which required a portion of the sales tax on gasoline and diesel fuel to be spent on surface transportation projects. Prop. 42 was expected to provide more than $3 billion for transportation projects during the past three years. But so far, less than 10 percent of that amount has been delivered due to repeated state budget crises that led to loans of Prop. 42 revenue to other state programs.

State funding for transportation projects has been reduced to the point where local agencies are now unable to plan any new projects for at least two years. In Orange County, funding has already been suspended or delayed for more than $120 million worth of projects.