Bonding bill in limbo at Legislature and so are projects around the state

Cities and towns around Minnesota waiting on state money to fix crumbling sewer systems, aging bridges and out-of-date college campuses are hoping that legislators manage to revive a public works projects bill that stalled last year.

That's when the construction bonding bill imploded in the final minutes of the legislative session over a transit-funding dispute.

In the meantime, many of the planned projects have been waiting for state funding for years, as need mounts and inflation drives up construction costs.

In the real world, that plays out in places like Coon Rapids, where Fire Chief John Piper is hoping — again — for $12.6 million from a bonding bill approval that would help fund a rail-separation project around the state's busiest rail crossing.

Backups from the more than 80 trains that cross one of Coon Rapids' busiest streets mean emergency responders wait for crucial extra minutes to respond to fires and medical calls.

"Plain and simple, we can't get to our emergency calls," Piper said.

The state has a long history of using its debt capacity to sell construction bonds that help cover the costs of projects that are too expensive for one community to bear, but are seen to have important local or regional impact.

With less than a month until lawmakers are supposed to head home, the House's GOP majority has not yet released a bonding proposal; House GOP leaders say it could be later this week. That leaves a short window to strike a deal with DFL Gov. Mark Dayton, who calls the needs urgent.

Dayton, who released a $1.5 billion bonding proposal in January, said failing to pass one this year would be "catastrophic" for Minnesota's public universities and for communities awaiting help for major wastewater treatment upgrades. "These are urgent needs, and it would be tragic for the bill not to pass this session," he said.

On that point, at least, everyone seems to agree.

Rep. Dean Urdahl, R-Grove City, chairs the House Capital Investment Committee, which assembles bonding bills. Urdahl said he's also concerned about roads and bridges and university upgrades that keep getting pushed off. He said a bonding bill from House Republicans would prioritize projects included in last year's failed bonding bill.

"I think there's a general feeling that we need to get something done," he said. "The needs are there."

Urdahl said Monday a bonding bill from House Republicans could be released this week. Several Senate committees have passed a bonding bill assembled by Republicans leading that chamber, but by legislative rules, the House must act first on a bonding bill.

Urdahl said the House GOP proposal will be smaller than what Dayton wants — probably around $800 million and certainly not over $1 billion, he said.

That would leave many state needs unmet, but Urdahl said it would have to do. "That's the money we have for this right now," he said.

At a time when interest rates are low and Minnesota boasts a high credit rating, Dayton said it would be "short sighted" to spend less than $1 billion. But "a billion is better than nothing," he said.

Figuring out which projects make the cut is one of the more politically fraught processes at the State Capitol. State agencies facing potential cuts in Republican budget measure, like Health and Human Services, are gearing up for another fight. Dayton's plan calls for significant borrowing for state mental health and sex offender programs, including $70.3 million for improvements to the Minnesota Security Hospital in St. Peter. The Senate plan leaves out some of the governor's projects, including funding for the sex offender program.

Dayton wants to borrow more than $275 million to upgrade college and university campuses around the state. That includes $16.9 million to complete an "education village" at Winona State University, where new facilities would be used for teacher training programs.

University President Scott Olson said the campus turned into a construction zone after the Legislature approved the first phase of funding.

Now, students are meeting in temporary classrooms and will stay there until the rest of the money comes through.

"It's a significant hardship," Olson said.

In the south-central Minnesota town of Dennison, Mayor Jeff Flaten is feeling déjà vu. Last year, his request for help with his city's aging wastewater system — so old and unreliable that he had to crawl into a manhole each day and make sure it was working — got a good deal of attention from lawmakers from both parties. His city's project made its way into the bonding bill, only to be put on hold when the measure fell apart last year.

This year, he's trying again, meeting with lawmakers and writing a steady stream of newspaper editorials making his case for Dennison's repairs — and for state leaders to pass a bonding bill in a timely fashion.

"It's been a little agonizing, waiting for this thing to roll out," he said.

Erin Golden • 612-673-4790