Senator Duey Stroebel (R-Cedarburg) has been committed to finding efficiencies in Wisconsin’s road building efforts by working directly with county officials. According to the Reason Foundation’s review of state roads, Wisconsin spends over $227,000 per mile of state-controlled road while Minnesota spends $95,000 less.
One way to make local road aids go further is to examine and reduce the federal regulations in local projects. One such example was highlighted by Waukesha County officials. A 2.4 mile project on Janesville road was split into two equal 1.2 mile sections. The federally funded section cost nearly $2 million more.
“This past session, I met with my local county highway commissioners and DOT officials,” said Senator Stroebel. “They agreed there are additional administrative costs when using federal money in local projects. There is no reason the ‘fed swap’ bill should not have passed. Quite frankly, some special interests and leaders are holding captive what is best for the state of Wisconsin.
“I am a conservative who believes in running government as efficiently as possible. I am glad Governor Walker – a great conservative leader – recognizes the need to reduce the cost of government over raising taxes. Unfortunately, great ideas from people actually running local road improvement projects are stalled when politics trump good policy.”
The recommendation was an idea from the 2013 Wisconsin Transportation Finance and Policy Commission and has been long advocated for by the Wisconsin County Highway Association. Senator Stroebel continues to discuss road issues with all stakeholders and will continue to highlight opportunities for savings in the DOT budget.