Gold Hill council signs joint letter asking legislators not to reallocate state transportation funds

The Gold Hill City Council voted on Jan. 20, 2026, to sign a joint letter from local governments in Jackson County asking the county's legislative delegation to oppose proposals that would reallocate the historic 50-30-20 split of the State Highway Fund.

City Manager Lily Morgan presented a draft prepared by county public works and explained why the city was being asked to join: she said the proposed reallocation discussed during the upcoming short legislative session could remove an estimated $9,000–$10,000 per month in state revenue sharing that the city currently uses for transportation maintenance and projects. "This will shut us down from getting things accomplished in our city if we lose the state revenue sharing of our gas tax," Morgan said, noting the loss would affect routine maintenance and planned projects such as paving and drainage fixes.

Morgan asked the council whether the mayor and city manager should sign the letter; councilors agreed and moved to sign. Councilor Joe Bergen moved to sign the letter and the motion carried on a council vote. Staff said they would circulate the document after the meeting for signatures and that leaders from other local governments had requested a prompt response so the sign-on could be submitted in time for legislative outreach.

Council discussion included concern about the difficulty of making up large transportation funding shortfalls with local options and the distribution of a prior $270,000 regional allocation for Greenway planning. Councilors encouraged residents and officials to contact legislative representatives about local impacts.