X-Tra Rant

Here are a few things I learned from about Richie Mitch’s toll road privatization at the recent IDC meeting where we had some speakers reprensenting the Indiana Senate Democratic Caucus. They talked about Daniels’ privatization alot, and there are some doozies.

• The amount of money the state would take in from the 75 year lease is less than the amount of money Indiana would get from tolls over that 75 year period. The money would be spent in 10 years under the Daniels plan, if I heard right through my convulsions of disgust. This is not a lease, this is a loan from a private investor and the collateral is the toll road and NE Indiana commuters’ wallets.
• I think I got this part right from what I heard. The “prevailing wage”, which is used to pay construction and otther workers the “prevailing union wage” would not apply to this project. it’s only enforced for projects with federal dollars, even though traditionally non-federally funded projects used it as well under a sort of gentleman’s agreement.
• In the lease agreement would be a ‘non-compete clause’ that would make any road improvement within 10 miles in either direction of the toll road subject to approval of the toll road’s leaseholder. That means if the state wanted to widen a road that runs within 10 miles of the toll road, they’d have to get a foreign company’s approval – even though they only lease the toll road!
• Apparently, the Governor is holding other road projects hostage over this, threatening Senators and Reps that if they do not support his roads initiative that they won’t see any work on the roads in their district for the rest of their term. (This came right from the Deputy Chief of Staff for the Indiana Senate Democrats and not from former Indiana Congressman Baron Hill’s comments). Very classy, Daniels. You learned well from W I see – if you can’t get what you want via normal procedure, twist arms and threaten opponents.

The biggest question to me is one of “where’s the beef?” – if the lease is truly for less money than we would take in without privatizing it, what is the benefit past the short term gain of getting 75 years worth of money up front so we can spend it quicker? Is that the fiscal responsibility we are supposed to belieeve is the hallmark of the GOP?

Also, couldn’t we save a ton of road money by not going new terrain for I-69 and using the route through Terre Haute instead? if we need so much road money, wouldn’t that be one of the first places to look? Just a thought.

And speaking of the Governor’s threats and Baron Hill’s comments, nice temper tantrum gov. Nothing like using personal insults against a former Congressman when you don’t like something he said.