Utah House Approves New B&C Road-Funding Formula After Lengthy Floor Debate

The Utah House voted unanimously on Feb. 21 to pass House Bill 247, a major rewrite of the B & C road-funding formula that redistributes the 25% local share of the gas tax. The motion, adopted as amended on a pink-sheet substitute, passed the House 72–0 and the measure was forwarded to the Senate for further consideration.

The bill replaces the prior multi-factor allocation with a straightforward split: 50% allocated by weighted road miles and 50% by population. Road miles are weighted by surface type — the floor discussion and bill text use the multiplier system the sponsor described, with paved roads weighted highest (sponsor: "a paved road would receive 5 times as much funding"), gravel roads assigned an intermediate weight, and dirt roads a lower weight. Sponsor Representative Stevens said the multipliers derive from DOT and local-government studies of construction and maintenance costs.

Representative Glenn Hatch offered pink-sheet amendments clarifying two key technical points: (1) chip-sealed roads are to be counted as paved for the weighting calculation, resolving prior ambiguity about chip-seal classification; and (2) counties that would otherwise lose funds under the new formula would be protected by a 10% hold‑harmless guarantee. An additional amendment established that the first one-third of any natural growth in the B & C account be shared as a modest inflationary increase to those held‑harmless counties, while revenues from explicit tax- or fee-rate increases would be distributed under the standard 50/50 formula. The House adopted the substitute (pink sheet) and later the substitute motion as read on the floor.

Floor debate focused on distributional winners and losers. Opponents from some urban areas warned the change would shift revenue away from densely populated counties on the Wasatch Front, while supporters said the new formula corrects anomalies that previously directed money to jurisdictions without roads or with disproportionate allocations. Representative Short cautioned that changes could move dollars away from Salt Lake County; Representative Hatch and others argued the compromise is equitable and preserves the task-force negotiated balance.

Clerks recorded an oral roll call after the amendment and final passage; the House Clerk announced the tally as 72 yes, 0 no. The sponsor said the bill incorporates an additional $18 million to the B & C fund from a 1.16% sales-tax appropriation for the current year, which factored into hold‑harmless calculations.

What happens next: HB 247, as amended, will be transmitted to the Senate for its consideration. The House debate makes clear the bill reorders how road dollars flow statewide — reallocating by mileage and population while using surface-type multipliers and a limited hold‑harmless/growth mechanism to soften transitions for affected counties.