SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Senate made short work of the $1.23 billion transportation funding bill on Wednesday, making it clear they want that money to go to Utah companies and Utah workers, The Salt Lake Tribune reports.
When first proposed, HB433 was a massive $2.26 billion package, which included $1.4 billion in borrowing through bonds to fund many transportation projects, but Senate Republicans were uneasy with that gargantuan amount of debt.
Eventually, House and Senate leaders settled on a much smaller amount to borrow, just $264 million. That smaller dollar amount is coupled with a slight increase in one-time money to fund a number of transit and transportation projects, including the long-discussed project to double-track portions of the FrontRunner commuter rail.
The revamped package avoids borrowing more than $1 billion by extending the timeline for the completion of several construction projects. That extra year will allow the state to fund those projects through the Transportation Investment Fund.
Click here to read the full story from The Salt Lake Tribune.
