Hartford Courant reports, “Preparing for what’s virtually certain to be a passionate debate, a legislative committee on Monday [January 30] decided there will be a public hearing this year on whether Connecticut should reinstitute highway tolls. The transportation committee agreed to raise the issue, but there’s no sign that opposition has weakened.” The report does add that “toll advocates believe the prospect of huge deficits ahead will lead lawmakers to reconsider their thinking” about tolling. The hearing schedule will be decided on in February.
The Joint Transportation Committee has teed up two “electronic tolling” bills: PHB 5458 and PHB 6058.
WTNH reports, “There is almost universal agreement at the state and local level that the state’s infrastructure needs to be rebuilt. But the idea of imposing ‘electronic highway tolls’ to pay for it is running into a huge legislative traffic jam.”