The Northwest Indiana Forum said it has given conditional support to the plan to lease the Indiana Toll Road and Gov. Mitch Daniels’ Major Moves, though it raises serious questions about the funding distribution and other aspects of the plan.

The forum, a regional business organization, issued a nine-point position paper on Major Moves. The 75-year Toll Road lease would provide the state with $3.85 billion to help fund Major Moves, a 10-year, $10.6 billion transportation plan.

The Forum’s paper states that Major Moves should represent additional dollars for Northwest Indiana projects, over and above the commitments already in the Indiana Department of Transportation budgets.

“Major Moves should clarify that the proceeds from the lease will be received in addition to the existing INDOT commitments; it should not be a shifting of INDOT’s funds away from its annual $600 million set-aside for Northwest Indiana,” states the Forum.

The Forum also calls on the state lawmakers to increase the funding for the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority to the original $100 million level. In its latest version, H.B. 1008 calls for $20 million for the RDA, but with the condition that half of it go to the Gary/Chicago International Airport.

The Forum’s position paper raises questions about the governor’s commitment to designate 34 percent of the Toll Road lease proceeds to the seven northern Indiana Toll Road counties.

“There is no apparent connection between projects proposed to be funded by the Major Moves Initiative and those projects which demonstrate the greatest return on investment,” states the position paper.

Further, the paper says that the 34 percent does not reflect a quantitative assessment and does not reflect a comparison of potential development between regions of the state. It also says that the 34 percent does not reflect a pro-rata share based on the seven Toll Road counties’ population.

The Forum also says that the cost of administering the privatization plan should be paid first from the full $3.85 billion generated by the lease proceeds, prior to the calculation of how the funds would be distributed. Some opponents of the Toll Road lease have said that the administrative costs are part of northern Indiana’s 34 percent share.

The Forum also says that the non-compete clause in the Toll Road lease needs to be clarified. As it is now, the clause would prohibit the future eastward extension of the proposed Illiana Expressway to connect with I-80, I-90 and I-94 and would bar new construction of interstate highways within 10 miles of the Toll Road.

In addition, the Forum said Major Moves should reflect projects in the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission’s 2030 Plan.

“There appears to be an insufficient connection between Major Moves and NIRPC’s long range plan for transportation investment in Northwest Indiana. The Toll Road counties should be assured of continued funding out of the State’s annual federal funds and gas tax revenues to a level which, when combined with Toll Road funds, is adequate to fund Northwest Indiana’s strategic transportation needs as identified by NIRPC’s long range plan,” states the position paper.

The Forum also calls for including LaPorte County in the RDA, while also saying that any new RDAs created must include a local matching requirement. The proposed Northeast Indiana RDA did not require the three counties involved to put up any local money as Lake and Porter counties are now required.

The bill that would allow the Toll Road privatization, H.B. 1008, cleared the Indiana Senate Thursday. State Senator Karen Tallian, D-Portage, voted no, while the other two senators who represent portions of Porter County -- Vic Heinold, R-Kouts, and Sue Landske, R-Cedar Lake -- voted yes.

The bill is now expected to go to a conference committee, in which four lawmakers from both parties will attempt to hash out a compromise. If no agreement among the four can be reached, the bill is dead. If the four lawmakers strike an agreement, both the House and Senate must approve of the new language.

State Rep. Ralph Ayres, R-Chesterton, who supported the bill in the House, said this morning that he will not vote in support of the changes made in the Senate.

He said one issue that must be resolved is the increased funding for the RDA.

Posted 3/3/2006