MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Wisconsin Department of Transportation Secretary Dave Ross promised lawmakers Tuesday he will improve the agency’s operations in the wake of a scathing audit and criticism from policy makers who are wrestling with whether to raise taxes to plug a projected $1 billion shortfall.
Ross, who’s been on the job for less than two months, told the Legislature’s Audit Committee at a hearing that he joined with them in being frustrated with how the Transportation Department had been operating. The audit found that the DOT had been dramatically under-estimating the cost of highway projects, largely because it didn’t account for inflation.
“We will improve transparency, revise outdated policies and most importantly become a better steward of taxpayer dollars,” Ross told the committee. “We need to change the culture at DOT. We need to become more performance driven. We need to be more accurate.”
His comments came after lawmakers aired grievances with the department as outlined in the audit. The report, released in January, found that 19 major highway projects completed in the past decade cost a total of $1.5 billion - twice as much as the $772 million original price tag. It also said the cost of 16 ongoing major highway projects more than doubled to a total of $5.8 billion - increasing by a staggering $3.1 billion - from the time they were approved through August 2016.
Republican Sen. Chris Kapenga, of Delafield, said he was “extremely concerned” with how the department was reaching its cost estimates.
Discussion of the audit comes as the Legislature debates how to plug a nearly $1 billion transportation budget shortfall. Gov. Scott Walker has proposed $500 million in borrowing and about that much in project delays. Assembly Republican leaders are calling for $300 million in gas tax and other vehicle-related fee increases, with a corresponding reduction in unspecified taxes elsewhere. Walker has said he’s against raising taxes to pay for roads.
“Giving them more money would absolutely be the wrong thing to do at this point,” Kapenga said.
Republican Sen. Alberta Darling, co-chair of the Legislature’s budget committee, called for an outside review of the department’s management.
Ross blamed a failure of the department’s management, including not keeping lawmakers aware of increasing costs, and he pledged to improve. That includes implementing all of the recommendations of the audit, he said.
The Audit Committee proposed a bill that would require the department to account for inflation when estimating how much major road projects will cost, and annually explain any cost overruns to state lawmakers. The bill would also require DOT to report annually to the Legislature, explain any changes in cost estimates, give an update on when the project is expected to be completed and offer an opinion on whether the work will be done on time under the original budget.
Republican Sen. Rob Cowles, co-chairman of the Audit Committee, said he was concerned that even if new requirements were put on the Transportation Department they may not be followed.
“It’s one thing to pass legislation. … but if they don’t do it, our efforts here and yours are for naught,” he told state Auditor Joe Chrisman.
The audit also found that Wisconsin’s roads have consistently deteriorated over the past five years and are in “considerably” worse shape than roads in six other Midwestern states. The proportion of state highways in good condition decreased from 53.5 percent in 2010 to 41.0 percent in 2015, the audit said.
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