Item B: Funding Strategies for Transportation System Operations, Maintenance, and Preservation

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services for the purpose of obtaining an independent opinion as to the efficiency and effectiveness of those services. A report on the findings of that study will be issued no later than October 2001. Prior to issuing our final recommendation to the Council, we have recommended that the City Manager retain an external consultant for the purpose of conducting a critical examination of the pavement condition assessment and the $53 million preservation backlog estimate, which were integral to our study and conclusions.The purpose of this external review is to obtain an independent, expert opinion as to the accuracy of the preservation backlog estimate as a reliable indicator and measure of the transportation system funding problems facing Eugene. It is our intention that, upon receipt and review of both the independent pavement management consultant?s report and the external report on transportation system operation and maintenance services, we will submit to the Council our final recommendation for funding our unmet transportation needs. SUBCOMMITTEE INTERIM CONCLUSIONS We, the citizen members of the Eugene Budget Committee, after study and discussion of both the transportation system needs and the various revenue alternatives, have reached the conclusion that significant additional funding from new revenue sources is needed in the near future if Eugene is to preserve our investment in transportation system infrastructure. The interim conclusions of the subcommittee are as follows: In the face of projected O&M funding shortfalls and service reductions beginning in FY03, C ensuring adequate funding for the of the City?s operation and maintenance activities transportation system is absolutely essential. The most important capital funding need to be addressed is in the backlog of preservation C . work on roads and off-street bike paths Providing adequate funding for is critical to prevent ongoing annual preservation activity C preservation backlogs from accumulatingin the future. The subcommittee?s current consensus is that, in order to accomplish these priority C objectives, the appropriate . level of new revenue needed is $9 million annually The two funding measures which most closely conform to the subcommittee?s guiding C principles while also generating sufficient revenue to address the priority objectives are: the Transportation Utility Fee C a small local motor vehicle fuel tax C We strongly support and encourage cooperative efforts with the City ofSpringfield for the C regional implementation of any new revenue source for transportation funding. Prior to issuing our final recommendation to the Council, this subcommittee recommends C that for the purpose of an independent review be conducted by an external consultant issuing a report based on a critical examination of the pavement condition assessment and preservation backlog estimates which were integral to our study and conclusions. However, we also acknowledge the significant challenge facing the Council in educating the community regarding this critical need for new transportation funding revenues. The daunting amount of the preservation backlog in itself represents a significant financial obstacle. Given the importance of this need to the future of our community and the potential impact on its citizens for years to come, we have 2