Story originally printed in the Winona Daily News or online at www.winonadailynews.com

Published - Wednesday, March 05, 2008

Regarding state vetoes, No. 37 seems to be a charm

By Daily News editorial board

The previous 36 vetoes of Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty have stood the test of the Legislature. But not the $6.6 billion transportation bill passed on Monday. Both the money and the override couldn’t have come soon enough.

We salute our local legislators — Reps. Gene Pelowski and Ken Tschumper and Sens. Sharon Erickson Ropes and Steve Murphy — who voted to override Pawlenty, who leads an administration content to talk about no new taxes while roads and bridges throughout the state crumble.

Pawlenty has framed the issue as one of taxes, going so far as to claim the Legislature has just taken the federal government’s rebate checks out of the hands of working Minnesotans.

But that’s not the case. Those rebates may serve as the first tax break in history which was never asked for; and, the money that was being taken from Minnesotans is that of our children and grandchildren, who were increasingly being asked to foot the bill as we borrowed and bonded for roads that would crumble before they’d ever get behind the wheel.

Something needed to be done and, to borrow a cliché, desperate times indeed called for desperate measures.

We’re glad the transportation bill passed. We hope to start seeing an increase in road restoration and repaving. All one has to do is take a trip to St. Paul via Highway 61 to witness potholes the size of compact cars. An exaggeration maybe, but not far from the truth.

And the truth is that the Minnesota Department of Transportation has been systematically starved to the point where places like Winona County have been faced with turning paved roads back to gravel. This seems to be the governor’s idea of progress — no new taxes, but no new roads, either.

Some have worried that an increased gas tax will cripple Minnesota’s economy. Then again, a full tank of fuel doesn’t mean much when you don’t have any roads to travel. And saving a few cents at the pump doesn’t matter much when repairs to tires, suspension and other parts of the vehicle are in the hundreds of dollars because of the shoddy roads.

Besides, a gas tax places the burden of roads on those who use them most — on the travelers. That seems to make the most sense. For those who drive the most, they’ll pay a larger share.

Businesses will also benefit. For years we’ve been hearing about the poor shape of Minnesota’s roads, coupled with the almost impossible traffic gridlock in the Twin Cities. This bill seems to make a good start at improving the roads for business.

With more funding for roads comes more jobs. As Minnesota’s construction industry continues to be plagued by a nationwide slowdown, this is a bright spot for construction.

Some have argued the transportation has been nothing more than a pretext for a battle over political ideology, but folks, potholes aren’t partisan, neither are crumbling bridges.

By Darrell Ehrlick, editor, on behalf of the Winona Daily News editorial board, which includes publisher Rusty Cunningham and online editor Jerome Christenson. To comment, call or (507) 453-3507 e-mail letters@winonadailynews.com.