2012 -- H 7581

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LC00960

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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2012

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A N A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC UTILITIES AND CARRIERS -- PUBLIC TRANSIT INVESTMENT

     Introduced By: Representatives O`Grady, Tanzi, Handy, Blazejewski, and Valencia

     Date Introduced: February 15, 2012

     Referred To: House Finance

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Sections 39-18.1-2, 39-18.1-3, 39-18.1-4 and 39-18.1-5 of the General

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Laws in Chapter 39-18.1 entitled "Transportation Investment and Debt Reduction Act of 2011"

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are hereby amended to read as follows:

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     39-18.1-2. Legislative findings. -- The general assembly finds that:

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      (1) Rhode Island now has, and for some years has had, a serious shortfall of funds

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available for the upkeep, maintenance and repair of the state's highways, roads, and bridges.

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      (2) Rhode Island now funds, and for some years has funded, the local twenty percent

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(20%) match required to bring federal transportation dollars into the state by means of selling

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bonds. This has proven unsustainable and creates unaffordable debt-service obligations for future

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generations of Rhode Island taxpayers.

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      (3) The health, safety, and convenience of Rhode Island's citizens are seriously and

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adversely affected when the state's highways, roads, and bridges are not kept in a proper state of

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upkeep, maintenance and repair.

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      (4) A critically important function of the state in maintaining the health, safety, and

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welfare of all the people of Rhode Island is to ensure the proper upkeep, maintenance and repair

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of the state's highways, roads, and bridges.

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     (5) The Rhode Island public transit authority, which depends heavily on proceeds of the

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gasoline tax for its operating budget, has suffered significantly in recent years due to high

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volatility of gasoline prices with a resulting volatility in both the level of gasoline sales and the

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amount of gasoline tax proceeds from such sales.

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     (6) Availability of convenient, affordable public transit is critically important to Rhode

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Island’s economic health and security because many Rhode Islanders depend on public transit in

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order to get to their places of employment, medical appointments, schools, and to carry on their

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daily activities.

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     (7) A critically important function of the state in maintaining the health, safety, and

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welfare of all the people of Rhode Island is to ensure the continued functioning and reliability of

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public transit in Rhode Island.

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      (5)(8) Rhode Island must consider all potential sustainable sources as a vehicle for

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maintaining and improving the transportation infrastructure of the state, including public transit.

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      (6)(9) Additional stable and secure funding sources are absolutely necessary in order for

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the state to carry out its essential functions, including the upkeep, maintenance and repair of the

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state's highways, roads, and bridges, and providing for the continued functioning and reliability of

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public transit. In order to avoid to the full extent possible the creation of enormous and

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unaffordable debt-service obligations for future generations of Rhode Islanders, these funding

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sources should be created on a pay-as-you-go basis, and bonding should be reduced to the fullest

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extent practicable.

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     39-18.1-3. Definitions. -- When used in this chapter:

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      (1) "Department of Transportation" means the department created by chapter 13 of title

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42 of the general laws of Rhode Island.

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      (2) "Director" means the director of the Rhode Island department of transportation.

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      (3) "Highway maintenance" means the upkeep, maintenance, and repair of the state's

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highways, roads, and bridges, including repaving or resurfacing the same.

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      (4) "State Planning Council" means the state planning council within the division of

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planning of the department of administration, as established by Rhode Island general laws section

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42-11-10.

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      (5) "Transportation Improvement Program" means the transportation improvement

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program that is created and amended from time to time by the state planning council.

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     (6) “Authority” means the Rhode Island public transit authority, established by chapter

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18 of title 39 of the general laws of Rhode Island.

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     39-18.1-4. Rhode Island highway maintenance trust fund created Rhode Island

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highway maintenance and public transit trust fund created. -- (a) There is hereby created a

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special account in the general fund to be known as the Rhode Island Highway Maintenance and

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Public Transit Trust Fund.

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      (b) The fund shall consist of all those moneys which the state may from time to time

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direct to the fund, including, but not necessarily limited to, moneys derived from the following

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sources:

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      (1) There is imposed a surcharge of thirty dollars ($30.00) per passenger car and light

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truck to be paid by each car and light truck owner in order to register that owner's vehicle and

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upon each subsequent biennial registration. This surcharge will be effective shall be phased in at

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the rate of ten dollars ($10.00) each year. The total surcharge will be ten dollars ($10.00) from

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July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014, twenty dollars ($20.00) from July 1, 2014 through June 30,

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2015, and thirty dollars ($30.00) from July 1, 2015 2012 through June 30, 2016 2013 and each

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year thereafter.

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      (2) There is imposed a surcharge of fifteen dollars ($15.00) per car and truck, for those

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cars and trucks subject to annual registration, to be paid annually by each car and truck owner in

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order to register that owner's vehicle and upon each subsequent annual registration. This

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surcharge will be effective phased in at the rate of five dollars ($5.00) each year. The total

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surcharge will be five dollars ($5.00) from July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014, ten dollars

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($10.00) from July 1, 2014 through June 30, 2015, and fifteen dollars ($15.00) from July 1, 2015

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2012 through June 30, 2016 2013 and each year thereafter.

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      (3) There is imposed a surcharge of thirty dollars ($30.00) per operator's license to be

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paid every five (5) years by each licensed operator of motor vehicles. This surcharge will be

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phased in at the rate of ten dollars ($10.00) each year. The total surcharge will be effective ten

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dollars ($10.00) from July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014, twenty dollars ($20.00) from July 1,

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2014 through June 30, 2015, and thirty dollars ($30.00) from July 1, 2015 2012 through June 30,

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2016 2013 and each year thereafter.

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     (4) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, all fees paid to the general

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treasury for biennial passenger car and light truck registration and for annual car and truck

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registrations according to the following schedule:

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     (i) Beginning in fiscal year 2013, twenty percent (20%) of the fees described in this

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subsection which are collected by the division of motor vehicles shall be transferred to the Rhode

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Island highway maintenance and public transit trust fund and the remainder shall be deposited to

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the general fund.

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     (ii) Beginning in fiscal year 2014, forty percent (40%) of the fees described in this

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subsection which are collected by the division of motor vehicles shall be transferred to Rhode

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Island highway maintenance and public transit trust fund and the remainder shall be deposited to

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the general fund.

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      (iii) Beginning in fiscal year 2015, sixty percent (60%) of the fees described in this

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subsection which are collected by the division of motor vehicles shall be transferred to Rhode

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Island highway maintenance and public transit trust fund and the remainder shall be deposited to

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the general fund.

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      (iv) Beginning in fiscal year 2016, eighty percent (80%) of the fees described in this

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subsection which are collected by the division of motor vehicles shall be transferred to Rhode

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Island highway maintenance and public transit trust fund and the remainder shall be deposited to

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the general fund.

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     (v) Beginning in fiscal year 2017, and continuing thereafter in perpetuity, one hundred

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percent (100%) of the fees described in this subsection which are collected by the division of

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motor vehicles shall be transferred to Rhode Island highway maintenance and public transit trust

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fund and the remainder shall be deposited to the general fund.

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      (c) All funds collected pursuant to this section shall be deposited in the highway

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maintenance fund and public transit trust fund and shall be used only for the purposes set forth in

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this chapter.

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      (d) Unexpended balances and any earnings thereon shall not revert to the general fund

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but shall remain in the highway maintenance and public transit trust fund. There shall be no

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requirement that moneys received into the highway maintenance fund during any given calendar

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year or fiscal year be expended during the same calendar year or fiscal year.

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      (e) The highway maintenance and public transit trust fund shall be administered by the

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director, who shall allocate and spend moneys from the fund only in accordance with the

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purposes and procedures set forth in this chapter.

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     39-18.1-5. Allocation of funds. -- (a) The monies in the Rhode Island highway

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maintenance and public transit trust fund to be directed to the department of transportation

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pursuant to subdivision (a)(1) of this section shall be allocated through the transportation

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improvement program process to provide the state match for federal transportation funds, in place

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of borrowing, as approved by the state planning council. shall be apportioned as follows:

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     (1) Sixty-five percent (65%) to the department of transportation to be used for highway

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maintenance, to offset borrowing in accordance with subsection (c) of this section.

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     (2) Thirty-five percent (35%) to the authority to be used in maintaining, enhancing,

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and/or expanding services. These funds may be used by the authority for capital expenditures

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according to the restrictions contained in subdivision (b)(2) of this section, or for routine

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operations and maintenance, or any combination of those.

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     (b)(1) The expenditure of moneys in the Rhode Island highway maintenance and public

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transit trust fund by the department of transportation shall only be authorized for projects that

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appear in the state's transportation improvement program plan as the same has been approved by

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the transportation advisory committee.

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     (2) To the extent that moneys in the Rhode Island highway maintenance and public

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transit trust fund are expended by the authority for capital expenditure, all such expenditures must

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first be approved by the state planning council, which shall only authorize expenditures for such

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capital projects that appear in the state’s transportation improvement plan as the same has been

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approved by the transportation advisory committee.

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     (c) Moneys received by the department of transportation pursuant to subdivision (a)(1) of

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this section shall be used to provide the state match for federal transportation funds, in place of

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borrowing.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect on July 1, 2012.

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LC00960

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC UTILITIES AND CARRIERS -- PUBLIC TRANSIT INVESTMENT

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     This act would include public transit in the Rhode Island highway maintenance fund and

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accelerate the surcharges that support the fund.

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     This act would take effect on July 1, 2012.

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LC00960

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