On April 28, 2017 the Governor signed Senate Bill 1 (Beall, Chapter 5, Statutes of 2017), which is known as the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017. To address basic road maintenance, rehabilitation and critical safety needs on both the state highway and local streets and road system, Senate Bill 1: increases per gallon fuel excise taxes; increases diesel fuel sales taxes and vehicle registration fees; and provides for inflationary adjustments to tax rates in future years.
Beginning November 1, 2017, the State Controller deposits various portions of this new funding into the newly created Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation Account (RMRA). A percentage of this new RMRA funding is apportioned by formula to eligible cities and counties for basic road maintenance, rehabilitation, and critical safety projects on the local streets and roads system.
Prior to receiving an apportionment of RMRA funds from the State Controller in a fiscal year, a city or county must submit to the California Transportation Commission a list of projects proposed to be funded with these funds. All projects proposed to receive funding must be adopted by resolution by the applicable city council or county board of supervisors at a regular public meeting. The list of projects must include a description and the location of each proposed project, a proposed schedule for the project’s completion, and the estimated useful life of the improvement. This report is due to the California Transportation Commission by May 1st of each year.
In addition to the project list report, for each fiscal year in which RMRA funds are received and expended, cities and counties must submit documentation to the California Transportation Commission that details the expenditure of all RMRA funds, including a description and location of each completed project, the amount of funds expended on the project, the completion date, and the estimated useful life of the improvement. This report on expenditures is due to the California Transportation Commission by October 1st of each year.
A city or county receiving an apportionment of RMRA funds is also required to sustain a maintenance of effort by spending at least the annual average of its general fund expenditures during the 2009–10, 2010–11, and 2011–12 fiscal years for street, road, and highway purposes from the city’s or county’s general fund.
The following schedule lists the major milestones for the Local Streets and Roads Funding
Annual Reporting Program:
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Cities/counties submit their project lists to the California Transportation Commission
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May 1st each year
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California Transportation Commission adopts initial list of eligible cities and counties
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June Commission meeting each year
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California Transportation Commission submit initial list to the State Controller
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No later than June 30th each year
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California Transportation Commission adopts subsequent list of eligible cities and counties
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August Commission meeting each year
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Cities/Counties submit their Annual Reporting of Fiscal Year Expenditures to the California Transportation Commission
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October 1st each year
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To promote statewide consistency in the content and format of project lists and expenditures submitted to the California Transportation Commission, and to facilitate transparency within the Local Streets and Roads Funding Program, a standard project list format and online submittal tool is currently in development and must be used. Instructions on how to create an account and use the online project submittal tool are included as Web Attachment 1. Local jurisdictions should begin preparing their project lists for submittal and receiving governing body approvals now, using the format outlined in the draft Local Streets and Roads Funding 2018 Annual Reporting Guidelines, which are included as Web Attachment 2.