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City hears Sacramento update on Highway 46 East and regional measure push; local representatives seek state funding
Summary
A legislative advocate updated council on state budget volatility, ongoing efforts to secure right-of-way and construction funding for Highway 46 East/Union Road interchange projects, and legislation (SB 333) to allow a countywide measure; council and staff said the projects require regional partners and state awards to proceed.
A legislative advocate for Paso Robles briefed the council on state budget conditions, several transportation grant wins and an ongoing campaign to secure right-of-way and construction funding for the Highway 46 East at Union Road corridor.
Gus Kheri of Kheri Consulting told the council the state’s fiscal picture is volatile and that the California Transportation Commission (CTC) will release staff recommendations in June with a vote in late June; he described a multi-agency push to secure funds for right-of-way acquisition and later construction of the 46 East improvements.
Kheri said the city has already received earmarks and competitive awards for other local projects (including a $3 million earmark and $13.8 million for Niplet corridor work cited in the presentation) and that SlowCoG (SLO Council of Governments) is a funding partner on the 46 East right-of-way ask. He described Senate Bill 333 as a potential pathway for the county to hold a regional transportation measure so voters can consider a broader funding package.
Council members asked about the benefits and process for becoming a “self-help” county that can levy local transportation measures; Kheri said 25 of 58 counties have such measures and cited Santa Barbara County’s example of leveraging local revenue to attract state and federal matching funds. He said SlowCoG is preparing match funds and that the city’s legislative outreach is ongoing in Sacramento.
Council expressed support for continued advocacy in Sacramento; staff said the city will continue working with SlowCoG and its state legislative delegation to make the case for funding.
No council action was required. Kheri’s presentation emphasized that right-of-way acquisition would be the near-term ask to preserve corridor options and that construction funding would require future funding cycles and matches from local or regional sources.
