December 2, 2017
To The Editor: Diversion of county roads and bridges fund a serious problem
As stewards for the taxpayers of Logan County, it is difficult to plan the replacement of roads and bridges within our county, when in the Special Session of the Legislature, Governor Fallin diverted an additional 80 million dollars from the County Improvements for Roads and Bridges, also known as CIRB funds. This brings the total money diverted from the program 130 million dollars this year. Statewide, this will delay or remove 170 county road and bridge projects.
This is the fourth time our CIRB fund has been diverted to help address the budget shortfall in our state. The CIRB fund is a product of money designated by past Legislators to receive revenue from car tag and license fees, which was a fair fee paid by automobiles and trucks for use on the roads within our state. The diversion of funds over the years amounts to 230 million dollars that was dedicated for road and bridge improvement. We realize the issue that the State Legislature has, but equal diversion of other agency funds would seem to be fair to all. As County Commissioners, we view ourselves as partners with the Legislature and the Governor to build a better State for the future. Our number one priority are the safety of all Oklahoman’s and the issues that keep us awake is those yellow buses and students who are exposed to critical needs in Logan County.
We would hope that you would join our efforts to educate our Legislators and other elected officials on the importance of maintaining a well thought out plan to address our County’s needs, with the hope they would support a way to recapture the loss of funding as our economy improves.
Sincerelly,
Marven Goodman, County Commissioner
District 1, Logan County, Oklahoma
Note: This post first appeared at Sooner Politics, a “24/7” blog on Oklahoma policy and politics.
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CapitolBeatOK welcomes letters to the editor. All submissions should be no more than 400 words and e-mailed to editor@capitolbeatok.com. Please include a contact phone number for verification purposes. All letters are subject to editing. Letters to the editor will remain posted for one week at the editor’s discretion.