Bend directs millions more to fixing failing streets

The Bend City Council votedWednesday night to allocate more of the city’s general fund for the 2015-17 biennium — more than $4.7 million worth — to street maintenance and preservation.

But councilors warned that some of the added revenue comes from one-time or variable sources, and that the long-discussed $80 million street maintenance funding gap can’t be taken care of that way. Which is why a fuel tax is being discussed for a March special election ballot.

The budget adjustment implements the city’s new fiscal policies, approved in October, which are intended to better support street maintenance funding, officials said in a news release.

In October, the council amended city fiscal policies to be able to dedicate reserves above the 20 percent policy level to street maintenance. That means future revenues that come in higher than expected – from property taxes or transient room taxes, for example – can now go directly to street maintenance.

The council approved a budget adjustment that increases appropriations for street maintenance and preservation by $4,719,600 over the 2015-17 biennium.

This adjustment includes an increase in general fund support of $4,082,900 for the 2015-17 biennium from the following sources:

$1,871,000 reduction in General Fund reserves, Council policy decision
$414,000 increase in projected transient room tax revenues due to increased tourism activity
$430,000 increase in property tax revenues, from increase in taxable assessed value over budgeted amounts
$1,367,900 prior year savings in the General Fund, Council policy decision

The adjustment also includes an additional $636,700, which is budgetary savings from the prior fiscal year in the Transportation Operations Fund, also known as the Streets Fund. Some of this savings is due to a light winter last year, which reduced snow plowing and winter road maintenance costs.

The budget adjustment is consistent with information discussed with the Street Maintenance Funding Committee and with Council during its Nov. 2 work session.

“Thanks to the input of two separate, diverse, citizen groups –- the Budget Committee and the Street Maintenance Funding Committee –- and to the expanding economy, we’re able to shift more money into street maintenance than we’d originally planned,” said Mayor Pro-Tem Sally Russell.

“A lot of these additional funds are based on one-time savings or events, such as a very light year for snow removal expenses, or the sale of some city property. Some of them won’t be available next year,” Russell said.

“The Street Maintenance Funding Committee also daylighted the need for additional, sustainable funding, so we can keep our road conditions from declining, and we can maintain our streets in the most cost-efficient way,” she added.

The council is also considering putting a fuel tax measure on a March ballot to help fill the funding gap. The council will hold a public hearing at 6 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 30 on a possible fuel tax measure.

At its regular business meeting at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 2, the council is expected to make a decision about putting a fuel tax question to voters. Both meetings are at City Hall, 710 NW Wall Street in downtown Bend.

The Bend City Council has a goal to create a funding package for street maintenance to improve the condition of Bend’s streets. To learn more about the city’s street maintenance funding issue, visit www.bendoregon.gov/streetsfunding.

The moves came on a night when several big-ticket items came before the council for adoption, including:

-$1.4 million to buy six new ambulances as current ones near the end of their scheduled 10-year lifespan.

-$28.1 million in state Department of Environmental Quality loans, and a future cap of $63 million, from the state for the southeast Bend sewer interceptor project.

-$12.2 million in DEQ loans, and a future cap of $21 million, for upgrades to the city’s wastewater treatment plant.