BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AJR 4
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ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AJR 4 (Miller)
As Amended April 5, 2011
Majority vote
TRANSPORTATION 12-0
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|Ayes:|Bonnie Lowenthal, | | |
| |Jeffries, Achadjian, | | |
| |Blumenfield, Bonilla, | | |
| |Buchanan, Eng, Furutani, | | |
| |Logue, Miller, | | |
| |Portantino, Solorio | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Memorializes the President of the United States (U.S.) and
the Secretary of the United States Department of Transportation to
award a federal Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation
Act (TIFIA) loan guarantee to the State Route 91 Corridor
Improvement Project.
EXISTING LAW : Authorizes the Riverside County Transportation
Commission (RCTC) to impose and collect tolls on State Highway Route
91 in Riverside County and to issue bonds and other forms of
indebtedness for specified purposes.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : In 2008, the Legislature enacted SB 1316 (Correa),
Chapter 714, Statutes of 2008, that gave RCTC the authority to
develop the State Highway Route 91 Corridor Improvements Project.
The project, between the Orange County line to Interstate 15 in
Riverside County, includes a general purpose traffic lane in each
direction, improved ramps and intersections at major city streets
that intersect the freeway in Corona, better connections between
Interstate 15 and State Highway Route 91, and the extension of the
State Highway Route 91 Express Lanes, which are currently located on
State Highway Route 91 in Orange County to Interstate 15. The
project is a $1.2 billion project that is expected to create 18,000
jobs.
Project proponents assert that the key to the project's success is
RCTC's financing plan, which is based on a mix of TIFIA loan
AJR 4
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guarantees and revenue bonds. TIFIA provides federal credit
assistance in the form of direct loans, loan guarantees, and standby
lines of credit to finance surface transportation projects of
national and regional significance. TIFIA credit assistance
provides improved access to capital markets, flexible repayment
terms, and potentially more favorable interest rates than can be
found in private capital markets for similar instruments. TIFIA
loans are intended to help advance qualified, large-scale projects
that otherwise might be delayed or deferred because of size,
complexity, or uncertainty over the timing of revenues. Many
surface transportation projects, such as highway, transit, railroad,
intermodal freight, and port access, are eligible for assistance.
The author has introduced this bill to ensure that, during the
highly-competitive TIFIA application process, California's largest
job-creating transportation project-the State Highway Route 91
Corridor Improvements Project-receives a full and fair hearing from
the U.S. Department of Transportation in consideration of awarding
RCTC with a TIFIA loan.
Analysis Prepared by : Janet Dawson / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093
FN:
0000251