KDOT: Rising construction costs and project timing shrink how much the state can deliver under 10-year Ike program

Secretary Calvin Reid told the Senate Ways and Means Committee that higher construction costs and the timing of project lettings are reducing how much the Ike Transportation Program can deliver, even though revenue to the State Highway Fund has generally exceeded the program’s original forecasts.

Reid said the program was originally estimated at $9.9 billion and noted, “we are costs are about 40% more now than what we would have estimated that they were going to be at this time in 2020.” He told senators that construction cost trends — including a roughly 60% increase in construction-related costs observed across the first four years of the program and an average 40% increase relative to 2020 estimates — are the main driver behind the reduced purchasing power of available revenue.

The discrepancy between years is also driven by project timing. Kyle Anderson, KLRDF fiscal analyst, summarized the budget lines shown in the committee packet: “The 2025 agency adjusted budget request is for $2,560,000,000. The legislative budget committee cut out about $6,000,000 of that. The agency's request for 2026 is $1,680,000,000 and the legislative budget committee cut about $8,000,000 from that.” Anderson…