Lawmakers let deficit in transportation fund slide for now

Talk about it

State lawmakers have decided not to close a $33 million deficit in the transportation fund.

The DOT wanted to scale back future highway projects to make up for the shortfall in revenues.

But the Joint Finance Committee agreed Thursday that it’s better to keep the projects on the table, and put road builders to work.

And if the deficit is still a problem later on, the panel could address it then.

Senate Majority Leader Russ Decker said the move would save about 900 jobs. The committee also approved almost $93 million in transportation projects to be covered with federal stimulus money.

That includes part of Wisconsin’s share of a new bridge across the St. Croix River to Stillwater, Minn., and the replacement of a ferry boat across the Mississippi River from Cassville into Iowa.

The panel also approved spending about $10 million stimulus for other items. That includes another $3 million for the state’s Birth to 3 program that helps babies and toddlers with disabilities.

Tags: transportation fund, wisconsin, deficit