Road Construction Funding is Topic of Stearns County Public Hearing

ST. CLOUD -- A public hearing is scheduled for next month so Stearns County commissioners can consider how to fund road construction projects over the next five years.

The county is trying to get caught up on projects which have been delayed due to funding constraints.

County Engineer Jodi Teich says they prepared three different five-year road construction plans for commissioners to consider. One plan left the funding formula as is.  Another would raise the wheelage tax and the last would be to add a half-cent sales tax strictly for transportation projects.

Raising the wheelage tax from $10 to $20 would double the current figure of $1,400,000 collected every year for road projects to an estimated $2,800,000.

A half-cent transportation sales tax which would infuse an estimated $9,250,000 into the construction budget every year. It would sunset once all of the designated projects are completed and paid for.

The public hearing will be held at the start of the county board meeting June 20th.