DOT cries out for funding

CHARLESTON -- South Carolina road funding woes are related to the state 16-cent-per-gallon gasoline tax that has not been raised in more than 20 years while fuel prices have skyrocketed, said Henry Taylor, who resigned this week as chairman of the state Department of Transportation Commission.

"We simply are not receiving enough to maintain our roads, much less contemplate new projects. Funding for the DOT is inadequate," Taylor said.

Danny Isaac of Myrtle Beach, commission vice chairman, said he is concerned that the DOT budget is inadequate to fully address maintenance and new road construction needs.

"I-26 is a nightmare between Columbia and Charleston," he said. "The volume is more than the road can sustain."

Isaac represents the 1st Congressional District, including all or part of Berkeley, Charleston, Dorchester, Georgetown and Horry counties.

The DOT commission is constantly making the General Assembly aware of the department's funding shortfalls, he said. There is an ongoing struggle to balance the state's need for new roads with maintenance requirements in the DOT's $1 billion budget, Isaac said.

"We are years behind the curve. Our funding is half of what it needs to be to match the rest of the country. The General Assembly is not going to have a tax increase until the people demand it," he said.

Stimulus funding helps, Taylor said, but it's not a solution.

Taylor, of West Columbia, said he does not support an increase in the per-gallon gasoline tax but thinks the state could look at other options, such as a tax tied to fuel cost, like a sales tax, as is done in North Carolina. Or state lawmakers might consider a tax based on how many miles are driven.

"I think it's reasonable to tie it to usage," he said. Taylor represents the 2nd Congressional District, including all or part of Aiken, Allendale, Barnwell, Beaufort, Calhoun, Hampton, Jasper, Lexington, Orangeburg and Richland counties.

State gasoline tax revenue in 2009 was $427 million, which was $18 million less than the year before, said Debra Rountree, DOT deputy secretary for finance and administration. South Carolina has the fourth-largest state-maintained road system and fourth-lowest gasoline tax rate, she said.

Taylor said he resigned Monday as commission chairman because his term is almost over and he is due to be replaced any day. He spoke by cell phone while traveling on vacation. "I'm in Florida, and I'm on all these wonderful highways they have," Taylor said. "Once you hit the Georgia line, you can see the difference."

In comparison, he said, I-95 in South Carolina is not in good shape.

Taylor came aboard the commission as a result of a restructuring effort that limited DOT commissioners to one four-year term. He served the remaining three years on the term of a commissioner he replaced who was beginning his third consecutive four-year term.

"I think it's gotten away from the good ol' boy system. I think there has been an upgrading of the commission," he said.

In 2007, Gov. Mark Sanford called the restructuring historic, while House and Senate leaders said it will take the politics out of the DOT commission and create accountability.

A new Cabinet position, the secretary of transportation, was created. Requirements and a screening process for commissioners were established. Also established were standards for approving projects based on criteria that take into account congestion, accidents and environmental concerns.

The secretary of transportation is appointed by the governor to oversee the day-to-day operations of the department. Each congressional district has a commission member selected by its legislative delegation. An at-large member is picked by the governor.

Taylor said that inherent in the restructured DOT is a power struggle between the secretary of transportation and the commission.

"I think sooner or later you have a possibility of a commission not being in step with the secretary," he said. That has not been an issue between the commission and Secretary of Transportation Buck Limehouse, he said.

Three commission members are serving day-to-day because their terms have expired but their replacements have not been named by their legislative delegations.