On May 26, the Pennsylvania House Democratic Policy Committee met to discuss transportation issues relating to Act 44. Passed by the Pennsylvania General Assembly and signed into law by the Governor in 2007, Act 44 provides transportation funding by converting I-80 to a tolled facility, increasing existing mainline Turnpike tolls, and issuing monetization bonds based on future toll revenues. Representatives of PennDOT and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission were on hand to brief the House Democratic Policy Committee. The following excerpts are from a transcript of the meeting:

Secretary Allen Biehler offered the committee an overview of PennDOT’s operations and recent work. He said PennDOT plans improvements to reduce congestion and maintenance issues, and measures roads for smoothness every two years. He noted the department classifies the Commonwealth's roads into four categories: interstate highways, state highways, local roads carrying more than 2,000 cars a day, and local roads carrying less than that number. Secretary Biehler provided an overview of PennDOT's plans for road and bridge improvements, and its expected use of federal stimulus money. With respect to the thousands of miles of local roads throughout Pennsylvania in need of maintenance, the secretary commented, "local needs are every bit as great as state needs."

Representative Santoni asked Secretary Biehler to explain where the state is in regards to the I-80 tolling plan. Secretary Biehler responded that the federal government did not accept the original application to begin tolling the interstate, and that a meeting is set up with the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) to "understand the issues of tolling I-80." The secretary also explained that Act 44 provides a mandate for tolling, and that the state will reapply for permission to toll I-80. Representative Santoni followed by engaging in discussion on what will happen if Pennsylvania does not get permission to toll the interstate. Secretary Biehler remarked that the state will face a loss of anywhere between $450 and $500 million, but that PennDOT has not discussed alternative options. He told the committee that the department will have no choice but to reduce the money available for maintenance and capacity improvements. According to Secretary Biehler, the state has already seen a reduction in funds available for maintenance and capacity improvements over the past five years, and it expects that to decrease even further should I-80 not be tolled.

The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission was represented by Vice Chairman Timothy Carson and Chief Executive Officer Joseph Brimmeier. Carson provided committee members with an overview of the Turnpike's mission under Act 44 which created a Public-Public Partnership between PennDOT and the Turnpike Commission. He explained that the partnership is expected to provide $83.3 billion over 50 years for transportation in the Commonwealth. According to Carson, the Turnpike has provided $1.6 billion to the department since the enactment of Act 44 in July 2007.

Carson told the committee members the Commission's financial condition "remains strong." He noted that their credit ratings have been reaffirmed by Moody's Investors Service including an A3 rating for the Commission's senior lien bonds and the A2 rating for its subordinate lien bonds. In addition, when the Commission issued additional bonds in January to fund Act 44 payments, the investor orders far exceeded the amount of bonds available.

Carson then reported on the application to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to toll I-80. He assured the committee that "the state's tolling application today remains viable with FHWA." Carson explained that no decision has yet been made on the possible resubmission of the application. He added that no steps should be taken until key U.S. DOT and FHWA positions have been confirmed and filled.

Carson testified, "As we await the suitable time to revisit the application from a federal standpoint, we have an opportunity to develop a more unified political consensus here in Pennsylvania regarding potential resubmission." He emphasized, "With only three spots in the competitive federal pilot program, it is important for Pennsylvania to preserve its status as a qualified applicant." Carson suggested that the state-of-the-art tolling system planned for I-80 would "result in 70% of passenger vehicles not paying a toll which will reduce diversion and keep more cars on the Interstate where they belong." Carson cautioned that if I-80 is not tolled, effective July 1, 2010, the Commission's payments drop to $450 million per year with no annual increase with the net result of $60 billion less in transportation funding in Pennsylvania over the remaining life of the agreement.