"Scheme takes public highway projects fully funded with tax dollars, some on the verge of completion, and turns them into toll roads."
Gov. Perry sued over toll highways
10/12/05
Canyon Lake Times Guardian
Copyright 2005
People for Efficient Transportation, Inc. filed a lawsuit last Thursday in the District Court of Travis County, on behalf of taxpayers throughout Texas against Gov. Rick Perry.
The lawsuit takes Gov. Perry to task, as the state's Chief Planning Officer, for allowing unlawful Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) to allocate federal dollars, which includes allocating funds for Perry's plan to privatize and toll already tax funded Texas public highways.
A spokesman for PET said Gov. Perry has mandated that MPOs shift the publics freeways into tollways across the state; however, the lawsuit claims Perry's MPO simply have no authority whatsoever to dispense funds for such an unpopular and unconstitutional scheme. That includes allocating tax dollars to Gov. Perry's unelected, therefore unaccountable Regional Mobility Authoritys (RMAs) who will set the toll rates for already tax funded public highways.
"It's important to note that public highways have never been shifted to tollways in the history of the United States," said Sal Costello, founder of PET. "At this moment, a Texas law simply does not exist to allow Rick Perry to complete his plan of converting our public highways to tollways."
Costello added that the governor's "tolling scheme takes existing public highway projects that are fully funded with gas tax dollars, some on the verge of completion, and turns them into toll roads at the last minute."
Copyright © 2005 Times Guardian. All rights reserved. www.timesguardian.com
10/12/05
Canyon Lake Times Guardian
Copyright 2005
People for Efficient Transportation, Inc. filed a lawsuit last Thursday in the District Court of Travis County, on behalf of taxpayers throughout Texas against Gov. Rick Perry.
The lawsuit takes Gov. Perry to task, as the state's Chief Planning Officer, for allowing unlawful Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) to allocate federal dollars, which includes allocating funds for Perry's plan to privatize and toll already tax funded Texas public highways.
A spokesman for PET said Gov. Perry has mandated that MPOs shift the publics freeways into tollways across the state; however, the lawsuit claims Perry's MPO simply have no authority whatsoever to dispense funds for such an unpopular and unconstitutional scheme. That includes allocating tax dollars to Gov. Perry's unelected, therefore unaccountable Regional Mobility Authoritys (RMAs) who will set the toll rates for already tax funded public highways.
"It's important to note that public highways have never been shifted to tollways in the history of the United States," said Sal Costello, founder of PET. "At this moment, a Texas law simply does not exist to allow Rick Perry to complete his plan of converting our public highways to tollways."
Costello added that the governor's "tolling scheme takes existing public highway projects that are fully funded with gas tax dollars, some on the verge of completion, and turns them into toll roads at the last minute."
Copyright © 2005 Times Guardian. All rights reserved.
posted by Porkus Maximus Tex: at Wednesday, October 12, 2005
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