With Oregon’s 2015 legislative session set to begin next week, Portland-area lawmakers and transportation officials’ eyes are watching Salem to see how funding for local and statewide transportation projects pans out.

Portland Mayor Charlie Hales announced earlier this month that the city council won’t ask taxpayers for money to pay for backlogged street maintenance – in part because it’s waiting to see whether money may be approved by state legislators. Similarly, the Oregon Department of Transportation has outlined two Senate bills – numbers 270 and 271 – and two House bills – numbers 2464 and 2465 – that would allocate money to transportation-related projects.

Senate Bill 270 is a bill to reallocate dollars set aside by House Bill 2001 – also known as the Jobs and Transportation Act of 2009 – that increased the gas tax and the two-year vehicle registration fee to pay for highway projects totaling about $1 billion.

“The bill is more mechanical than legislative,” Oregon Transportation Commission Chairwoman Tammy Baney said. “When the (Jobs and Transportation Act) was funded, the projects were estimated amounts. As we implement the projects, some are coming in under budget and some are coming in over budget. But because of the mechanics of the bill, we don’t have a way to just transfer money; thus we have to introduce legislation every session for adjustments.”

Baney said SB 270 codifies the monetary transfers that the transportation commission made to the budget to fund the remaining projects, including $100 million for improvements to the Sunrise Corridor, $45 million for improvements to the U.S. Route 26 interchange near Hillsboro and $24 million for interchange improvements on Interstate 84 near Troutdale.

“As we’ve completed some of the projects under budget we’ve reported to the transportation commission that some changes to the budgeting may be appropriate,” ODOT spokesman Peter Murphy said. “Its passage will effectively clean up the statutes enacted with Senate Bill 2001, but it has to go through the legislative process, so the changes aren’t necessarily set in stone at this point.”

ODOT is also tracking Senate Bill 271, which would impose two concepts to improve rail transportation safety. The first would increase the maximum assessment level the department can levy on railroads operating in the state from 0.35 percent to 0.5 percent of gross railroad revenue. The second would bring the state into compliance with federal safety requirements, allowing ODOT to continue to receive federal dollars to offset the cost of its oversight program as it applies to TriMet and the city of Portland.

Senate bills 270 and 271 are currently with the Committee on Business and Transportation.

Murphy said ODOT also is watching House bills 2464 and 2465

House Bill 2464 is a package designed to build on the success of the ConnectOregon programs passed by the 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011 and 2013 legislatures. If passed, the bill would allocate $58.6 million in lottery-based funds to invest in bicyclist/pedestrian, rail, marine, air and public transportation initiatives.

ODOT is also tracking potential changes to statutes at as well as services provided by the Department of Motor Vehicles.

HB 2464 would eliminate certain requirements for licenses, including changing addresses, indicating motorcycle endorsements and proving school enrollment for children under 18.

Leah Craft, ODOT’s government relations manager, says the proposed changes to the statutes involving issuing driver licenses would reduce the need for repeat DMV visits and decrease wait times for callers and visiting customers, providing the department with “moderate cost and time savings over time.”

ODOT is watching two proposals that would dedicate money to DMV modernization, including about $6.3 million to allow the DMV to allow payments with credit and debit cards and $32.8 million to update computer systems, according to Craft.

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Aurora State Airport, Oregon’s third busiest airport, was recently awarded $4.3 million from the ConnectOregon III program to build a control tower at the airport. (Photo by Dan Carter/91��Ƶ)

In response to criticism that it has moved ahead too quickly with plans to build a control tower at the Aurora State Airport, the Oregon Department of Aviation is standing firm that its only intention is to improve safety while money is available to do so.

The project, which last week officially received $4.3 million in lottery-backed funds, has taken hits from Clackamas County and Wilsonville city officials, who say the project places state interests above local ones. But the Department of Aviation, the state agency that runs the airport, says the quick timeline is necessary to qualify for a share of money available through the program.

With 450 aircraft based at the airport and sharing its one runway, state aviation officials say a staffed-control tower is necessary to avoid any potential accidents.

“This tower isn’t about future growth at the airport or potential revenues to the state,” said Mark Gardiner, chair of the Oregon Aviation Board. “It’s all about making the airport safer for its many users and the people around it.”

The Federal Aviation Administration agreed the airport needed a manned tower and said it would pay for the position. But that still left a gap in how the state aviation department would pay for the tower’s construction. Then the ConnectOregon money became available.

The Oregon Legislature created ConnectOregon in 2005 as a way to provide money for non-highway transportation projects such as fixing rails and improving airports. The third and most recent phase of the program contained $97.1 million for 41 projects. The airport tower ranked No. 4 on a list of priority projects.

But the city of Wilsonville and Clackamas County, both of which border the north side of the airport, have said the project shouldn’t have been submitted because the airport’s master plan hasn’t been updated yet.

The update is required by law to be completed every 10 years. The airport’s update was supposed to have been finished at the beginning of this year but was delayed due to a lack of money and won’t be done until next year, according to Mitch Swecker, state airports manager for the Department of Aviation.

The aviation department, however, has said the need for a control tower has been known for some time; it just was never formally added to the master plan.

“It’s not like we haven’t discussed a control tower, it’s been in the future layout plan for the airport since ‘76,” Swecker said. “Considering we had started the master planning process, we just didn’t want to pass on the opportunity to get this funding.”

The airport’s government neighbors say an updated master plan is necessary so that the increased use of the airport associated with the new control tower can be studied. At a recent Oregon Aviation Board meeting, Mark Ottenad, public and government affairs director for Wilsonville, brought up concerns that the tower would allow the airport to handle more air traffic, which would mean more air passengers traveling to and from the airport on already-congested Interstate 5.

But the Department of Aviation believes that the tower will actually decrease traffic in and out of the airport.

“A lot of the smaller aircrafts and recreational pilots probably won’t use the airport once the tower is built,” said Swecker. “You will probably just see a few more corporate jets.

“We don’t envision the airport ever becoming a commercial airport or a cargo hub. And the implication that this could cost taxpayers in the future because of increased traffic is far-fetched.”

Another concern of both Wilsonville and Clackamas County has been the potential money the state could make from more pilots and businesses using the airport. These include possible landing and takeoff fees and lease deals for the surrounding lands.

The aviation department says those aren’t realistic sources of revenue for the state.

“During the master planning process we discuss every possible way we could derive revenues,” said Chris Cummings, planning and project manager for the department. “But landing and takeoff fees aren’t even in the realm of realism.”

And from a real estate perspective, only a handful of lots could potentially be built out, Swecker said.

“The city of Wilsonville has decided there shouldn’t be any new facilities at the airport, but they aren’t the ones in charge of land use for the area,” Swecker said. “They are running an agenda.”

While Ottenad stands by his claims, he hasn’t heard of any organization making an appeal on the funding.

“Something might come out after the holiday weekend, but I haven’t heard of anything yet,” Ottenad said.

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The Oregon Transportation Commission has awarded $101.7 million in lottery-backed state bonds toward 98 transportation projects across the state as part of the grant program.

Almost all of that money will go toward 41 projects meant to connect various modes of transportation around the state. These projects total $97 million and were trimmed down from a list of 81 project requests costing $201.4 million.

The other 57 projects, totaling $4.7 million, will go to safety and efficiency improvements at rural airports across the state.

The commission worked with the Oregon Department of Transportation and a final review committee to make the list of projects that would receive funding.

This is the third year Oregon has used lottery-backed bonds to help fund non-highway system transportation projects through the ConnectOregon program.

The 41 projects receiving $97 million include:

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After losing out on a federal funding opportunity, TriMet, regional government Metro and other project partners are looking for $1.3 million to complete a final environmental statement for the Lake Oswego to Portland Streetcar Project.

TriMet had applied for more than $2 million in funds for the transit project, which explores building a six-mile streetcar line between downtown Portland and Lake Oswego. Project manager Doug Obletz of Shiels Obletz Johnsen says the ConnectOregon III money was a long shot. Now, the jurisdictions involved in the effort will see who has money to give to the project.

“We’re talking to everyone about potential funding sources over the next three or four years,” Obletz said. “We need $1.3 million to complete the final environmental impact statement and enter the preliminary engineering phase. Then, we’ll need another $12 million for final project design. That’s serious money.”

Metro, TriMet, Multnomah and Clackamas counties, and the cities of Portland and Lake Oswego will be meet July 13 to discuss funding options. According to Cliff Higgins, public affairs specialist with Metro, the project is needed over the next twenty years as more people move to the region and travel along Oregon 43 between downtown Portland and Lake Oswego.

“Highway 43 will become more problematic as the region grows,” Higgins said. “Widening the highway is unfeasible because of the topography of the rocks along the highway. By exploring the streetcar option, we’re trying to meet the challenge of moving people, goods and services through that corridor.”

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A shortlist of projects receiving grants for transportation projects is on its way to the Oregon Transportation Commission for approval.

The list, made by the Connect Oregon III Final Review Committee, recommends 41 projects to receive some of $95 million in grants approved by the 2009 Oregon Legislature.

The list is prioritized, listing projects in order of importance. According to Shelly Snow, spokeswoman for the Oregon Department of Transportation, the list has been through three separate review processes since projects were submitted in late 2009.

“Nothing is final until the Oregon Transportation Commission says so,” Snow said. “But it’s a pretty thorough review process. While it’s not set in stone, it’s pretty close.”

The anticipated cost for all of the projects on the list is $97 million, some $2 million more than the allotted grants. So the projects on the list will be cut back some, Snow said.

A public hearing on the list will be held July 21, and the Oregon Transportation Commission will make final selections Aug. 24.

First on the list is a $5 million equipment upgrade for the Dredge Oregon, a ship used used for dredging for the Port of Portland; second is the $5 million Barnes Yard Bypass project for Union Pacific; third is the $7.8 million railroad rehabilitation project for the Port of Coos Bay.

Also included on the list is a $1.95 million project to realign the Westside Portland Streetcar through the site of the future Oregon Sustainability Center. It was prioritized for funding at 13 of 41 projects.

Two major projects by transit agency TriMet aren’t on the list: a funding request for $2.04 million for TriMet’s Lake Oswego to Portland Streetcar project and a request for $1.88 million for access improvements at TriMet’s Union Pacific Brooklyn Yard.

The Connect Oregon program invests in air, marine and public transit infrastructure. This is the third round of funding for the program which began in 2005.

To view the full list of projects view .

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