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Ohio to see 74% increase in federal transportation spending

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By Ken McCall, Staff Writer Updated 6:35 AM Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Ohio stands to see a one-year 74 percent increase in federal highway planning and construction dollars under President Obama’s proposed 2012 budget.

Fueled by Obama’s promise last fall to pump a $50 billion “up-front investment” into transportation projects, the state’s federal highway funding would reach more than $2.2 billion for the year.

The state would also see increases in airport improvement funds and federal transit grants if the budget were approved as is. Airport improvement funds would increase by almost $50 million, or 57 percent, to reach $136 billion in 2012. Transit grants would increase by $36.5 million, or 16.3 percent, to reach $260 million.

Proposed cuts to a program that gives guaranteed grant money to large and medium hub airports, would not affect Dayton International Airport, because it is classified, based on air traffic, as a small-hub airport, said Linda Hughes, spokeswoman for Dayton International Airport.

Hughes could not say Monday how much federal money the airport gets.

Obama’s $50 billion promise to help rebuild and modernize the nation’s transportation infrastructure was a one-time deal, according to a Department of Transportation spokesperson, and should not be expected in fiscal year 2013. The Administration envisions the up-front $50 billion as an investment that will precede the long-term reauthorization of the surface transportation act.

More critically to local planning organizations, Obama’s budget includes $556 billion for a six-year reauthorization of the act.

Don Spang, executive director of the Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission, which receives and allocates much of the federal transportation money to local governments said the reauthorization is “very critical” to planning road projects that often take many years to design and build.

The last surface transportation act expired in October 2009, Spang said, and everyone dependent of federal highway transportation dollars has been operating on temporary, short-term extension ever since. The last extension, passed by Congress in late December, expires next month.

“We need to at least have a short-term extension of the surface transportation legislation, and desirably and long-term, six-year extension of it,” Spang said.

Earlier this month, the commission’ board approved a resolution calling for reauthorization and sent letters to the congressional delegation asking them to support it.

In general, the U.S. Department of Transportation escaped the sharp end of Obama’s budget ax. While the department touts some cuts to discretionary spending, the overall spending on transportation would increase 16.3 percent over the budgeted 2011 spending to reach $89.6 billion in 2012.

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