HOUSE BILL No. 4962

 

May 19, 2009, Introduced by Reps. Ball, Donigan, Bauer, Kandrevas, Gonzales, Polidori, LeBlanc, Geiss, Lahti, Melton, Byrnes and Dean and referred to the Committee on Transportation.

 

     A bill to amend 1951 PA 51, entitled

 

"An act to provide for the classification of all public roads,

streets, and highways in this state, and for the revision of that

classification and for additions to and deletions from each

classification; to set up and establish the Michigan transportation

fund; to provide for the deposits in the Michigan transportation

fund of specific taxes on motor vehicles and motor vehicle fuels;

to provide for the allocation of funds from the Michigan

transportation fund and the use and administration of the fund for

transportation purposes; to set up and establish the truck safety

fund; to provide for the allocation of funds from the truck safety

fund and administration of the fund for truck safety purposes; to

set up and establish the Michigan truck safety commission; to

establish certain standards for road contracts for certain

businesses; to provide for the continuing review of transportation

needs within the state; to authorize the state transportation

commission, counties, cities, and villages to borrow money, issue

bonds, and make pledges of funds for transportation purposes; to

authorize counties to advance funds for the payment of deficiencies

necessary for the payment of bonds issued under this act; to

provide for the limitations, payment, retirement, and security of

the bonds and pledges; to provide for appropriations and tax levies

by counties and townships for county roads; to authorize

contributions by townships for county roads; to provide for the

establishment and administration of the state trunk line fund,

local bridge fund, comprehensive transportation fund, and certain


other funds; to provide for the deposits in the state trunk line

fund, critical bridge fund, comprehensive transportation fund, and

certain other funds of money raised by specific taxes and fees; to

provide for definitions of public transportation functions and

criteria; to define the purposes for which Michigan transportation

funds may be allocated; to provide for Michigan transportation fund

grants; to provide for review and approval of transportation

programs; to provide for submission of annual legislative requests

and reports; to provide for the establishment and functions of

certain advisory entities; to provide for conditions for grants; to

provide for the issuance of bonds and notes for transportation

purposes; to provide for the powers and duties of certain state and

local agencies and officials; to provide for the making of loans

for transportation purposes by the state transportation department

and for the receipt and repayment by local units and agencies of

those loans from certain specified sources; and to repeal acts and

parts of acts,"

 

by amending sections 1g and 9a (MCL 247.651g and 247.659a), as

 

amended by 2007 PA 199.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 1g. The transportation asset management council, in

 

conjunction with the department, counties, and municipalities,

 

shall develop and implement a pavement management system for each

 

mile of roadway on the federal-aid eligible highway system in

 

Michigan. This pavement management system shall attempt to ensure

 

that a disproportionate share of pavement shall not become due for

 

replacement or major repair at the same time. The transportation

 

asset management council shall provide local road agencies with the

 

training needed to utilize the pavement management system in

 

accordance with this section. The transportation asset management

 

council, in conjunction with the department, county road

 

commissions, and municipalities, shall, on a cost-effective and

 

efficient schedule, develop and implement an asset management

 

program for major classes of transportation assets. The asset

 

management program shall be designed to ensure that federal asset-

 


reporting requirements are met and that a disproportionate fraction

 

of assets do not become due for replacement or major repair at the

 

same time. The asset management shall be designed to collect and

 

analyze data in sufficient detail to enable each road agency to

 

know the state of repair and remaining service life or each major

 

class of asset for which it is responsible. Data may be collected

 

at intervals or from samples that are determined to be cost-

 

effective, as determined under the priorities of federal reporting.

 

The transportation asset management council shall provide local

 

road agencies with the training needed to conduct asset management

 

in accordance with this section.

 

     Sec. 9a. (1) As used in this section:

 

     (a) "Asset management" means an ongoing process of

 

maintaining, upgrading, and operating physical assets cost-

 

effectively, based on a continuous physical inventory and condition

 

assessment.

 

     (b) "Bridge" means a structure including supports erected over

 

a depression or an obstruction, such as water, a highway, or a

 

railway, for the purposes of carrying traffic or other moving

 

loads, and having an opening measuring along the center of the

 

roadway of more than 20 feet between undercopings of abutments or

 

spring lines of arches, or extreme ends of openings for multiple

 

boxes where the clear distance between openings is less than 1/2 of

 

the smaller contiguous opening.

 

     (c) "Central storage data agency" means that agency or office

 

chosen by the council where the data collected is stored and

 

maintained.

 


     (d) "Council" means the transportation asset management

 

council created by this section.

 

     (e) "County road commission" means the board of county road

 

commissioners elected or appointed pursuant to section 6 of chapter

 

IV of 1909 PA 283, MCL 224.6, or, in the case of a charter county

 

with a population of 2,000,000 or more with an elected county

 

executive that does not have a board of county road commissioners,

 

the county executive for ministerial functions and the county

 

commission provided for in section 14(1)(d) of 1966 PA 293, MCL

 

45.514, for legislative functions.

 

     (f) "Department" means the state transportation department.

 

     (g) "Federal-aid eligible" means any public road or bridge

 

that is eligible for federal aid to be spent for the construction,

 

repair, or maintenance of that road or bridge.

 

     (h) "Local road agency" means a county road commission or

 

designated county road agency or city or village that is

 

responsible for the construction or maintenance of public roads

 

within the state under this act.

 

     (i) "Multiyear program" means a compilation of road and bridge

 

projects anticipated to be contracted for by the department or a

 

local road agency during a 3-year period. The multiyear program

 

shall include a listing of each project to be funded in whole or in

 

part with state or federal funds.

 

     (j) "State planning and development regions" means those

 

agencies required by section 134(b) of title 23 of the United

 

States Code, 23 USC 134, and those agencies established by

 

Executive Directive 1968-1.

 


     (2) In order to provide a coordinated, unified effort by the

 

various roadway agencies within the state, the transportation asset

 

management council is hereby created within the state

 

transportation commission and is charged with advising the

 

commission on a statewide asset management strategy and the

 

processes and necessary tools needed to implement such a strategy

 

beginning with the federal-aid eligible highway system, and once

 

completed, continuing on with the county road and municipal road

 

systems, bridges, and other major classes of assets, in a cost-

 

effective, efficient manner. Nothing in this section shall prohibit

 

a local road agency from using an asset management process on its

 

non-federal-aid eligible system. The council shall consist of 10

 

voting members appointed by the state transportation commission.

 

The council shall include 2 members from the county road

 

association of Michigan, 2 members from the Michigan municipal

 

league, 2 members from the state planning and development regions,

 

1 member from the Michigan townships association, 1 member from the

 

Michigan association of counties, and 2 members from the

 

department. Nonvoting members shall include 1 person from the

 

agency or office selected as the location for central data storage.

 

Each agency with voting rights shall submit a list of 2 nominees to

 

the state transportation commission from which the appointments

 

shall be made. The Michigan townships association shall submit 1

 

name, and the Michigan association of counties shall submit 1 name.

 

Names shall be submitted within 30 days after the effective date of

 

the 2002 amendatory act that amended this section. The state

 

transportation commission shall make the appointments within 30

 


days after receipt of the lists.

 

     (3) The positions for the department shall be permanent. The

 

position of the central data storage agency shall be nonvoting and

 

shall be for as long as the agency continues to serve as the data

 

storage repository. The member from the Michigan association of

 

counties shall be initially appointed for 2 years. The member from

 

the Michigan townships association shall be initially appointed for

 

3 years. Of the members first appointed from the county road

 

association of Michigan, the Michigan municipal league, and the

 

state planning and development regions, 1 member of each group

 

shall be appointed for 2 years and 1 member of each group shall be

 

appointed for 3 years. At the end of the initial appointment, all

 

terms shall be for 3 years. The chairperson shall be selected from

 

among the voting members of the council.

 

     (4) The department shall provide qualified administrative

 

staff and the state planning and development regions shall provide

 

qualified technical assistance to the council.

 

     (5) The council shall develop and present to the state

 

transportation commission for approval within 90 days after the

 

date of the first meeting such procedures and requirements as are

 

necessary for the administration of the asset management process.

 

This shall, at a minimum, include the areas of training, data

 

storage and collection, reporting, development of a multiyear

 

program, budgeting and funding, and other issues related to asset

 

management that may arise from time to time. All quality control

 

standards and protocols shall, at a minimum, be consistent with any

 

existing federal requirements and regulations and existing

 


government accounting standards.

 

     (6) The council may appoint a technical advisory panel whose

 

members shall be representatives from the transportation

 

construction associations and related transportation road

 

interests. The asset management council shall select members to the

 

technical advisory panel from names submitted by the transportation

 

construction associations and related transportation road

 

interests. The technical advisory panel members shall be appointed

 

for 3 years. The asset management council shall determine the

 

research issues and assign projects to the technical advisory panel

 

to assist in the development of statewide policies. The technical

 

advisory panel's recommendations shall be advisory only and not

 

binding on the asset management council.

 

     (7) The department, each county road commission, and each city

 

and village of this state shall annually submit a report to the

 

transportation asset management council. This report shall include

 

a multiyear program developed through the asset management process

 

described in this section. Projects contained in the department's

 

annual multiyear program shall be consistent with the department's

 

asset management process and shall be reported consistent with

 

categories established by the transportation asset management

 

council. Projects contained in the annual multiyear program of each

 

local road agency shall be consistent with the asset management

 

process of each local road agency and shall be reported consistent

 

with categories established by the transportation asset management

 

council.

 

     (8) Funding necessary to support the activities described in

 


this section shall be provided by an annual appropriation from the

 

Michigan transportation fund to the state transportation

 

commission.

 

     (9) The department and each local road agency shall keep

 

accurate and uniform records on all road and bridge work performed

 

and funds expended for the purposes of this section, according to

 

the procedures developed by the council. Each local road agency and

 

the department shall annually report to the council the mileage and

 

condition of the road and bridge system under their jurisdiction

 

and the receipts and disbursements of road and street funds in the

 

manner prescribed by the council, which shall be consistent with

 

any current accounting procedures. An annual report shall be

 

prepared by the staff assigned to the council regarding the results

 

of activities conducted during the preceding year and the

 

expenditure of funds related to the processes and activities

 

identified by the council. The report shall also include an

 

overview of the activities identified for the succeeding year. The

 

council shall submit this report to the state transportation

 

commission, the legislature, and the transportation committees of

 

the house and senate by May 2 of each year.