MDOT Director Bradley C. Wieferich on House budget proposal

LANSING, Mich. - Today, Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) Director Bradley C. Wieferich released the following statement in response to the state House's budget plan.

"MDOT officials are deeply concerned by the $78.5 billion budget proposed by the state House. Proposed cuts will prevent MDOT from responding adequately to dangerous road conditions and infrastructure damage, putting Michiganders, and their vehicles, at risk. Their budget also has an unacceptable impact on Michigan jobs. Cutting full-time positions (FTEs) in the department, including positions currently filled, will prevent MDOT from paying overtime for staff who provide critical response for issues like winter storms, malfunctioning signals and pump stations, and our statewide bridge crew serving moveable bridges and securing infrastructure damaged in high-load hits. MDOT balances our budget by using the hours associated with FTEs to pay those required overtime hours. Leaving the department without a mechanism to balance overtime hours will result in harm.

"Our system, responsible for carrying over half of all traffic, as well as nearly 80 percent of commercial traffic, provides a vital link supporting commerce, and will continue to decline without additional support. Eliminating bridge bundling will have severe consequences for both MDOT and local road agencies who are already facing severe bridge condition decline, with a loss of $230 million in federal grants, and increased future expenses resulting from individual contracts for design and construction."

Additional potential impacts from the House-passed budget include:

• Removing funding from the bond repayment fund required for programmed work projects, significantly delaying MDOT's ability to deliver needed projects timely and efficiently and impacting federal match, leaving dollars on the table that should be invested in Michigan roads and bridges.

• Significant impacts on transit, including the loss of $9.7 million in supportive funding to assist local transit agencies in delivering, planning, training and safety improvements, while also risking the loss of additional federal funding by not being able to meet the required local match if increases related to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) are not appropriated.

• Loss of funding to replace critical salt shed facilities, pivotal for safely storing efficient salt supply, allowing MDOT to respond to winter emergencies like those experienced in northern Michigan earlier this year, as well as ensuring safe travel for all Michiganders across our state.