Subcommittee advances DOT modernization bill after adopting pothole-reporting amendment
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Summary
A Senate subcommittee amended Senate Bill 831 to add a pothole-reporting-and-repair requirement and approved a consolidated amendment that removes proposed fees, assigns certain NEPA responsibilities to the state, revises procurement language and restores county legislative-delegation appointment authority for CTCs. The bill was reported favorably to the full committee.
A Senate subcommittee voted to report Senate Bill 831, a Department of Transportation modernization measure, favorably to the full committee after adopting a pair of amendments, including a pothole-reporting-and-repair provision and a broad "grand amendment" that removes multiple fees and revises procurement and appointment language.
The subcommittee adopted a sponsor's amendment described as "the pothole mitigation amendment" that would require DOT to provide a smartphone option to report potholes with GPS coordinates and to repair reported potholes using full-depth patching within a set time frame. "My amendment is what I call the pothole mitigation amendment," the senator who introduced the change said, describing the app and the requirement for full-depth repairs rather than repeat "tar and gravel" patching.
The consolidated amendment presented to the panel sought to bundle several prior changes into a single text. The sponsor told members the draft included technical adjustments to public-private partnership (P3) review to ensure oversight by JBRC and SPA, a provision to have the state assume NEPA responsibilities with an annual report describing that assumption, and the removal of mitigation and alternative-fuel fees from the bill. "Quite honestly, I'm concerned about the Senate initiating legislation where we are instituting a new fee or a new tax," the sponsor said when explaining the fee deletions. The amendment also clarified toll reciprocity language requested by DMV and removed proposed hybrid/alternative fuel fees.
On procurement and organizational language, the amendment deletes legacy references tied to when highway patrol was part of DOT and updates the bill to reflect the current Department of Public Safety structure. The package also restores appointment authority for County Transportation Committees (CTCs) to local legislative delegations, a change the sponsor said would better ensure municipal representation after some counties devolved appointment authority to county councils.
Committee members discussed local concerns, especially from the Charleston area, where flooding and the scope of projects eligible for a one-cent sales tax were raised as issues that may require separate, local technical fixes or standalone legislation. A senator representing that area said clarifying whether drainage and culvert extensions are included in penny-sales-tax projects is important for local implementation and for avoiding confusion on the ballot that the tax would be "a new tax" rather than an extension.
The subcommittee recorded votes to adopt the individual pothole amendment and the consolidated amendment and then voted to grant staff technical authority to finalize amendment language. After debate on funding and implementation questions, the subcommittee voted to report SB 831 favorably to the full committee for further consideration.
The bill will next go to the full committee; sponsors told members there remains additional work needed on funding mechanics and implementation details.