(Le Mars) — The newly passed increased fuel tax bill will mean about a million dollars more that will come to Plymouth County for road and bridge repairs, according to Plymouth County Engineer Tom Rohe. Rohe says the county gets funding from the state in two separate accounts. The first is the Road Use Tax fund which Rohe says consists of revenue collected from fuel tax, vehicle registrations, and sales tax on new sold vehicles. The county engineer says prior to the passage of the new fuel tax bill, Plymouth County would receive approximately $4.8 million dollars from the state. The second account is the Farm to Market Fund, which generally receives $1.2 million dollars.
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Rohe says the additional $870,000 dollars will be beneficial to Plymouth County as it will help start construction on projects that had been pushed back in priority due to lack of needed funding.
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He says the added money may mean an additional 2 to 3 more bridges can be repaired, or 8 to 10 culverts can be installed. Rohe says the added money will be beneficial, but he faces an uphill battle in terms of catching up with needed bridge and road repairs.
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Rohe explains the funding formula that determines how much money is allocated to counties, cities, and to the state.
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The Plymouth County engineer explains what the original budgets were set at for the upcoming fiscal year in terms of road and bridge construction and repair.
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