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Conferees tentatively agree to swap TIP and bridge funds while pledging help for town highways
Summary
House and Senate conferees agreed on language to swap certain TIP and state highway bridge funds and to use a $3,000,000 pilot to support town‑level allocations, but members said any district‑level leveling depends on that pilot and additional appropriations.
Members of the House and Senate conference committee on transportation met to reconcile competing draft language and tentatively agreed to swap portions of TIP (transportation improvement program) funds and state highway bridge funds while ensuring some support for town highways.
Staff pointed the committee to the draft language in sections 4 and 5 (pages 8–9) that implement the fund swap. Moderator (speaker 1) summarized the transfer as roughly the 1.75/1.70 TIP adjustment in exchange for transportation funds earmarked for state highway bridges and flagged the $1,700,000 figure tied to district‑level allocation decisions.
Committee members said district leveling of the swapped funds would be acceptable only if a separate $3,000,000 pilot line was preserved to direct aid toward towns. Chair Warren (speaker 7) said, "We are completely committed to finding additional help for our towns to deal with the situations that they're in," and acknowledged the conferees prefer different constructs for moving the money but share the goal of supporting towns.
Conferees also noted the swap is part of a larger appropriations discussion on the Senate side; staff and members said the final distribution remains contingent on enactment of the broader appropriations package and on whether the House concurs with the Senate position.
Next steps: conferees agreed to carry the agreed drafting forward in the conference draft and to await the House’s response on the overall appropriations language before finalizing allocations.
