OHIO HIGHWAYS Senator urges backing call for more funds

Voinovich's plan would boost the state's return on its federal gas taxes.
By JEFF ORTEGA
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
COLUMBUS -- Transportation, business and labor officials from throughout the state are backing U.S. Sen. George V. Voinovich's call for boosting the share of federal highway money Ohio receives.
"All regions of the state should come together on behalf of things that are going to make a difference for the entire state," Voinovich said Monday.
Voinovich, a Republican, former governor, and former mayor of Cleveland, is pushing his proposal that would boost the state's return on its federal gasoline taxes from the current 90.5 percent to 95 percent.
Legislation pending
Voinovich's legislation, which he said has bipartisan support, is pending in Congress. Voinovich hopes to have the proposal included in the federal highway reauthorization now being debated on Capitol Hill, his office said.
Voinovich said the measure, if enacted, could boost Ohio's federal highway funding by more than $300 million during the next six years.
Backers of the Voinovich proposal say it will boost economic development and jobs in the Buckeye State and help take care of road areas across the state such as the U.S. Route 24 realignment project in Northwest Ohio, Interstate 77 that runs from Cleveland to the Ohio River, and state Route 8 that cuts through Cuyahoga and Summit counties in Northeast Ohio.
"Transportation funding is an issue that impacts every region of the state, & quot; said Raymond Keyton, chairman of the Ohio Conference of American Automobile Association Clubs.
"It'll bring thousands of jobs for us in new highway construction," said Gary Schaeffer, secretary-treasurer of the Ohio State Building Trades Council.
Road upgrades
Gordon Proctor, director of the Ohio Department of Transportation, said Voinovich's proposal would be a welcome tool to support an Ohio road system that needs rebuilding. "Our system is wearing out," Proctor said. "It's getting old."
Earlier this year, the GOP-led state Legislature voted to boost the state gasoline tax for the first time in a decade and also voted to increase some motor-vehicle related fees to pump millions of dollars into new state roads.
Beginning July 1, the state's old 22-cent per gallon gas tax began its two-cent a year increase for three years as part of the new $4.7 billion state transportation budget.
The final 2-cent increase, however, would be rolled back if the federal government comes through with enough highway funds and a federal credit is put in place for ethanol fuel, under the state transportation budget.
Key for funding
One business official said Voinovich's proposal was key to getting funding for dozens of incomplete road projects around the state.
"We've got a large unfinished road network," said Reid Dulberger, executive vice president of the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber. "Without the additional funding, we'll never get the projects completed."