Amendment 3 would save funding for patrol, revenue dep't

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The so-called diversion of revenue from highway user fees to state agencies other than the Missouri Department of Transportation is an issue that has vexed policy makers for years. While almost universally decried, little has been done about it.

Amendment 3, which Missouri voters will decide Nov. 2, would pump a greater share of existing state revenue from fuel taxes, vehicles license fees and other related sources into MoDOT's coffers. However, it wouldn't cut off the Missouri State Highway Patrol or the Department of Revenue -- the main beneficiaries of the diversion -- from getting pieces of the road-fund pie.

John Mehner, the chairman of the Missouri Chamber Federation, a group taking a lead role in the drive for ratification, said the proposal is an important step but not one that will resolve MoDOT's funding woes.

"We think Amendment 3 is critical for Missourians to ever have faith again that the money is going where they think it is going," said Mehner, who is also president of the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce.

Most of the estimated $160 million Amendment 3 would shift to MoDOT when fully implemented wouldn't come from what is commonly considered to be the diversion. Instead, about $140 million would be raised by transferring to transportation the one-half of the proceeds from the state motor vehicle sales tax that currently is deposited in the state's general fund. That money would be phased out of general revenue over four years.

The actual diversion is the money directly sent from the road fund to other state agencies. For the current fiscal year, that amount is nearly $207.9 million. Those funds are divided among three agencies: the highway patrol, $141.5 million; the revenue department $46.8 million; and the Office of Administration, $19.6 million.

OA's portion is primarily for fringe benefits for revenue and patrol employees. It would be the only portion of the diversion directly eliminated by Amendment 3.

Until this year, three other agencies -- the Department of Natural Resources and the state auditor's and treasurer's offices -- received about $1.5 million combined from the road fund. Lawmakers removed them from that funding source when they drafted the current state budget. Amendment 3 would prevent lawmakers from restoring that money to those agencies and most other state departments.

As the Missouri Constitution is currently written, the patrol is entitled to revenue from the road fund but only for expenses related to "administering and enforcing any state motor vehicle laws and traffic regulations."

However, road fund revenue is so intertwined in the patrol's budget that it is difficult to ascertain whether its share is being spent only for those specific purposes allowed by the constitution.

Opposition unwanted

Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry spokesman Ray McCarty, who assisted in the drafting of Amendment 3, said attempting to wean the patrol from highway user fee revenue would have encountered stiff resistance.

"When we did polling on this, there just did not seem to be enough interest in disconnecting the patrol from that revenue stream," McCarty said. "The patrol is strenuously opposed to it, and, frankly, we didn't want any opposition."

Amendment 3, however, does attempt to tighten the existing restriction on how the patrol may use road money, adding language limiting it to the "actual cost" of enforcing traffic and vehicle laws.

Lt. Tim Hull, a patrol spokesman, said the change likely won't impact the agency's budget.

"That language isn't going to affect the patrol as far as highway funds coming to the patrol is concerned," Hull said.

The constitution in its present form also gives road money to the revenue department for the purposes of collecting fuel taxes. Amendment 3 would cap that amount at 3 percent of total collections.

McCarty said the cap is expected to ensure that the department gets no more road money that it currently receives but may slightly reduce it.

mpowers@semissourian.com

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