City/County Road Partnership & Proposed County Capital Project Partnership

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s BCC 2/8/00 with CITY MAYORS Page 2 of 7 used to set direction on road fund expenditures. He noted the Board determined that in times of declining revenue, the operation, maintenance and preservation of County roads was to receive the highest priority for funding. He added the Board set a goal to fund those activities from the state highway fund transfer, but it had not taken place. He noted the expenditures are normally $20 million to $22 million per year and the state highway transfers are only $13 million or $14 million. He reported that the timber receipts the County gets from the harvest on national timber lands was used for modernization projects, revenue sharing, economic development and assisted housing. He noted in 1998, the operating budget took a five per cent cut and without additional revenue in the future, the County's modernization program will decline and staff would be reduced accordingly. He stated that this year it is the Board's intent to keep, the road partnership funding at $2.5 million through the end of the owl guarantee from Congress. He reported the Fiscal Year 03/04 will be the end of the owl guarantee and after that Lane County will revert to a payment based on the actual harvest. He noted this past fiscal year if Lane County had been paid on the actual harvest, Lane County would have received $5.3 million and in 95/96 that amount would have been $3.4 million. Snowden noted that for the County funds, Lane County's share is based on the proportion of registered vehicles in Lane County vs. registered vehicles statewide. He added that percentage had decreased one-half per cent per year for the last ten years. Snowden reported that capital expense is too difficult to forecast. He noted the Road Fund Financial Plan assumes a continuation in the existing level of service that the County is now providing with its road system, but if there is not the timber money some of the projects in fiscal 01/02 may not go to contract when they are expected. He added that money for the community development fund inay not be spent. He said once the County gets to 04/05 and the timber receipts owl guarantee goes away, there will be a major drop in funding that will not be able to be replaced. He explained that House Bill 2389 (that was passed out of Congress last year) would change the projected forecast of timber receipts, extending the timber guarantees for seven years, to County fiscal 07. He said the stabilized amount would be $18.7 million. He added in the first five years, it will be about a $26 million increase over the money that is expected under the current owl guarantee. He noted the other is Senate Bill 1608. He added it has some of the similar provisions that HB 2389 does, but there are some differences. He said that 1608 would give the County less money because of the funding distribution, but Lane County would still receive $17.5 million. He added it makes the owl guarantee permanent and would be treated snore like an entitlement and would go a long way in stabilizing the County road fund. Sorenson asked about the relevance of the legislature's passage of a gas tax increase. Snowden responded the state legislature increased the gas tax this year and changed the method of truck taxation from aweight-mile based. system to a registration and diesel fuel system. He noted it had been referred by AAA and will be on the ballot as Measure 82 in May. He said if that passes {when it is fully implemented) the County would get $3.5 million more per year than what http://www.co.lane.or.us/BCC_Info/Meeting_Info/2000%20Minutes/February/00 2-8jt.htm 12/4/00