By Dewey Terrill

JC Post

State Senator Jeff Longbine expects the state to unveil a new transportation plan in the near future.

Longbine revealed some of the details last Saturday in Junction City, saying it would require the legislature to wean themselves off of the transportation sales tax over the next three years. “So that would be returning up to about $400 million to KDOT to be used for preservation, maintenance and new projects.”

The State Senator noted that here would be a few slight vehicle registration fee increases. “Major components would be returning some money to cities and counties to allow them to do street projects and street rehab. Another major component would be to life the property tax lid on transportation related projects within the city or county. It wouldn’t count against the property cap for them.  If they voted for it they could use that money for either match or to do a smaller project.”

Longbine confirmed KDOT would approve and prioritize both state level projects and those that are considered cap related. The state senator attended a legislative coffee in Junction City where he provided some information on the transportation plan.