Nov 20, 2013 3 min read

It’s hard to offer hearty congratulations to our state House lawmakers, considering how long it took them to act, but we suppose they – at least those who voted in the affirmative – are due some credit for putting aside politics and self-interest to finally approve legislation to address the state’s burgeoning transportation needs.

On Monday, Gov. Tom Corbett, former Gov. Ed Rendell and other advocates of the transportation measure held a news conference to push for its approval. Hours later, the House failed to pass it, but after 24 hours to reflect – and time, perhaps, for some arm-twisting behind closed doors – another vote was taken, and the bill was approved by a 106-95 margin.

There were lawmakers on both sides who were not happy.

Many Democrats refused to support the measure, which was approved by the Senate Wednesday, because it contains a provision to raise, from $25,000 to $100,000, the threshold at which union-scale wages must be paid on transportation projects. Our opinion is that the existing figure is artificially low, seeing as how it hasn’t been changed in more than 50 years, despite the costs of transportation work skyrocketing during that time. Raising the threshold seems perfectly sensible to us, in that it presumably would allow relatively small projects to be completed at a lower cost to taxpayers.

Many Republicans declined to get on board because of the tax and fee increases that are required to provide the $2.3 billion in increased annual spending to fix the commonwealth’s many crumbling roads and bridges, and provide funding to mass-transit systems.

Some of the money will come from an increase in wholesale gasoline taxes that no doubt will be passed on to consumers. The measure also calls for an increase in driver’s license and registration fees, and would raise fines for some driving infractions.

No one wants to see a big jump in gasoline costs, or to pay higher fees, but even Corbett, who famously pledged he would never raise taxes, recognized that Pennsylvania is smack dab in the middle of an infrastructure crisis. Those who use our roads and bridges have to expect to pay for their upkeep, and the state is woefully behind on that maintenance.

The idea that the existing state budget can be nipped and tucked to provide the money necessary to meet Pennsylvania’s infrastructure needs is shortsighted and foolish.

Rep. Kerry Benninghoff, a Centre County Republican, summed it up well, saying, “It may not be real popular. It may not be as fun as naming a bridge or naming a road. To wait does one thing, and that is increase the price (of repairs).”