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ITD asks JFAC for spending authority and cash transfers to cover multi‑year road projects
Summary
The Idaho Transportation Department told the Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee it needs supplemental and ongoing appropriations, and changes to reappropriation and appropriation language, to pay contractors on large multi‑year projects and to distribute general‑fund transfers to safety, capacity and maintenance work.
The Idaho Transportation Department asked the Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee on Thursday for additional spending authority and several one‑time and ongoing transfers to cover contractor payments and accelerate projects already under contract.
Brooke Dupree, budget and policy analyst with the Legislative Services Office, told the committee ITD is requesting a $60,000,000 supplemental for the current year (a $10,000,000 State Highway Local Fund component and $50,000,000 from the State Highway Federal Fund) and multiple fiscal‑year 2026 ongoing capital requests tied to federal funding increases.
The request includes a $57,276,000 ongoing capital outlay tied to higher federal receipts from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), a second ongoing request of $55,000,000 (split $50,000,000 federal / $5,000,000 local) and language to allow the Strategic Initiatives Program Fund to remain continuously appropriated rather than be capped by a single‑year appropriation. Dupree told the committee the department also seeks reappropriation authority up to $250,000,000 to cover multiyear contractor payments.
Why it matters: many of ITD’s projects are now multi‑year and funded from multiple sources (federal, state, local, bond proceeds). Director Scott Stokes told the committee these projects create “a wave of payout” as projects reach completion and contractors submit final payments; without additional spending authority the state risks being unable to make timely payments on projects already under contract.
Evidence and scale: ITD’s contract construction division reported estimated expenditures between $770 million and $1.4 billion over the last five years. Dupree said the department has received $250 million of reappropriation authority in recent years and that in FY24 the department had a sizable volume of contracted but unspent obligations. Dave Tolman, ITD chief administrative officer, told the committee, “As of the end of FY 24, our obligated unspent construction program was a little over $600,000,000 across multiple funding sources.”
Planned cash transfers and priorities: Among the cash‑transfer requests are a $99,704,000 general‑fund transfer earmarked for safety and capacity projects (historically split roughly 60% to ITD and 40% to local governments) and a $212,000,000 general‑fund request for road and bridge maintenance (with $127,308,000 to ITD and $84,872,000 to local units, per Dupree’s presentation). The department also seeks explicit language that any remaining cash balances in the State Highway Fund could be appropriated for construction projects.
Debt and payment mechanisms: Dupree reviewed existing debt programs. GARVEE (grant anticipation revenue vehicle) bonds have a total authorization of about $1.116 billion with a weighted‑average interest rate of 3.4%; current outstanding GARVEE bonds were reported at $522,000,000 and scheduled to be retired by 2040. Transportation Expansion and Congestion Mitigation (TECM) is funded through a sales tax diversion with mandatory minimum/maximum thresholds and is used for corridor projects and debt service.
Committee discussion and concerns: Lawmakers asked clarifying questions about the composition of the “bucket” State Highway Fund (state, local and federal streams), whether available ARPA balances remain (state financial staff said approximately $10,000,000 had been allocated earlier), and whether continuous appropriation language would remove legislative oversight. Director Scott Stokes explained continuous appropriation preserves the department’s ability to access prior‑year transfers for ongoing multi‑year projects and avoid timing shortfalls that can delay contractor payments. Stokes described a recent near‑term cash‑flow crunch in FY24 when ITD had to manage contractor payments closely to avoid a shortfall.
No formal action or vote occurred. Committee members indicated they wanted to review the cash balances and the department’s list of obligated but unspent contracts before weighing the requested language and transfers.
What’s next: ITD and staff agreed to provide additional detail on fund balances and the status of major projects. The committee will consider the supplemental and language requests as part of ongoing budget deliberations.
