Executive Director Steve Heminger's Report to the Commission Meeting of March 27, 2013
State Gas Tax Hike
Sacramento, February 28
In a little-noticed action, the State Board of Equalization voted 3-2 to increase the state excise tax on fuel (more popularly known as the largest single component of the “gas tax”) by 3.5 cents per gallon effective July 1, 2013. Although the vote broke along party lines, the action to index the fuel excise tax based on what a hypothetical sales tax on fuel would have generated is a compulsory requirement of the fuel tax swap enacted by the Legislature in 2010. As a result of this latest indexing, California will take the place of New York as the state with the highest “gas tax” rate in the nation.
CTC Events
San Francisco, March 4-5
The California Transportation Commission (CTC) held its regular monthly meeting in San Francisco this month. On March 4th, Chair Worth and several other commissioners welcomed their CTC counterparts at a reception in downtown San Francisco. On the following day, I provided welcoming remarks at the outset of the CTC meeting as well as a brief update on the construction of the new east span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. All of these events were overshadowed by the wrenching news that recently retired Executive Director Bimla Rhinehart had passed away after an intense bout with cancer. The CTC acted quickly at its meeting on March 5th to name chief deputy Andre Boutros as the next Executive Director.
Toll Bridge Program Oversight Committee
Oakland, March 7
At the latest meeting of the Toll Bridge Program Oversight Committee, we discussed several architectural details of the new span including paint and lighting treatments on the Skyway, bridgeheads at the connection point to the Yerba Buena Island tunnel, and reuse of piers after the old span is demolished.
APTA Legislative Conference
Washington DC, March 11-13
Chair Worth and Vice Chair Cortese led a delegation of several commissioners on our annual “March Madness” visit to the nation’s capital during the legislative conference of the American Public Transportation Association (APTA). Our Capitol Hill reception was particularly successful this trip, with outgoing Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, and numerous members of the California congressional delegation in attendance. Kudos to Tom Bulger for another productive visit. Copies of our advocacy book are at your places today.
Joint Policy Committee (JPC)
Oakland, March 15
The regular bimonthly meeting of the JPC featured discussion of the related issues of regional economic development and the adaptation challenges brought about by global climate change.
Electric Vehicle (EV) Strategic Council
San Francisco, March 21
Commissioner Kinsey chairs this public-private partnership group dedicated to the promotion of greater EV market penetration in the Bay Area. As it stands today, our nine-county region accounts for 10% of all the EVs purchased in the United States and over 1/3 of those in use in the State of California.
Big 4 MPO Meeting
Oakland, March 26
I hosted the latest get-together for the four largest metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) in California. Our agendas usually focus on issues related to implementation of Senate Bill 375 (Steinberg), but lately we have been adding other policy and legislative initiatives on which we can collaborate together.
Map of the Month
This map illustrates highway improvement performance by state from 1989-2008. A performance index has been prepared to highlight the total number of categories in which each state showed improvement. The darker the shade of green, the more categories of improvement. Most states (37 of 50) improved or maintained their performance in five or more categories. And most states (38 of 50) also spent less than the national average, per mile of responsibility. Interestingly, those states that spent the most money did not necessarily make the most improvement. For instance, California spent about twice as much as the average state (per mile of responsibility), but its performance improved in just two of the seven measures (deficient bridges and fatality rate). Hawaii and New York also spent between 2 and 2.5 times the national average but improved in just three of seven measures.
MTC Operational Statistics
The monthly report on the performance of MTC’s operating programs: