Maine to Decide on $51.5 Million in Bonds to Help Fund Infrastructure Improvements
Of the money, $41 million would be spent on roads and bridges, a sum that would make the state eligible for $72 million in matching federal funds.
The Maine Motor Transport Association is staying neutral on the bond measure, said MMTA President Brian Parke.
“We’re not taking a formal position because there is more in the bond question than just road and bridge funding,” Parke said.
The bond measure also would allocate money for port upgrades and public transit, as well as for emergency medical flight services.
Even if the voters approve the measure, however, it is unclear if the borrowing will go forward.
State legislators voted back in May to put the measure on the ballot, but Gov. Paul LePage (R) publicly disapproved. He did not veto the measure, but he refused to put his signature on it.
LePage said at the time that he would not vote for the bonds in November. He also published a statement saying that, even if voters authorized the borrowing, he would not spend the money “until we’ve lowered our debt significantly. That could be several years.”
The Maine Department of Transportation is also neutral on the bond issue, said DOT spokesman Ted Talbot.
“We’re neither for nor against the bond,” Talbot said. “We take the money that comes to us, and then we prioritize those projects.”
When the legislators voted to put the bond sale on the ballot, they did not specify what road and bridge projects would get the money if voters approve the borrowing.
The money would be spent at the “discretion” of Maine DOT, Talbot said.
“We would put it into our capital work plan,” he said. “Every year, we’re anywhere around $150 million that we wish we had to really do all of the projects that we identify.”
