Sen. Tom Barrett (R-Charlotte) introduced two pieces of legislation on Thursday from his 10-bill package proposal with the intent of implementing Michigan infrastructure policy reforms, according to a press release on his official website.
His first bill, Senate Bill 515, forces the Michigan Department of Transportation, with the help of an approved third party, to create a highway construction inflation index that will measure the inflation of highway construction costs before March 1, 2020. The other bill, Senate Bill 516, extends requirements for local asset management reports to six years, as opposed to three years, and places state reporting requirements into law.
“Many local road agencies have claimed that the cost of road construction has increased dramatically as the state boosted road funding over the last four years,” Barrett said in the press release. “Transportation infrastructure is expensive, and this reform would give the state better information about how market forces are impacting costs.”
Sen. Tom Barrett (R-Charlotte)
| Barrett's website
The bills are part of Senate Republican road policy reforms that also look to maximize the state’s use of federal transportation funding, establishing a local road agency advocate and improve the current road warrant program, among others.
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