TULSA, Okla. — Governor Kevin Stitt signed House Bill 2758, which will provide funding to improve structurally deficient bridges in Tulsa County.
Roughly 85% of the structurally deficient bridges in Oklahoma are county-owned.
The law creates the Preserving and Advancing County Transportation Fund (PACT Fund) with the purpose of constructing and maintaining the county highway system.
It also reduces the percentage of exiting gross production tax on natural gas that is deposited into the State's general revenue fund and allocates that revenue to the PACT Fund starting on July 1.
"The Governor’s signing of HB 2758 represents a significant milestone in enhancing the safety of our communities and strengthening the infrastructure that drives Oklahoma forward,” said Tulsa County District 2 Commissioner Lonnie Sims. “Tulsa County has some of the most deficient bridges in the state, and this recurring funding will accelerate their repair and replacement while ensuring continued investment to build a more resilient transportation network for the future."
The measure requires the money deposited into the PACT fund be allocated as follows:
- Two-thirds to be allocated to counties based on their per county mile highway construction and maintenance ratio. The measure sets the target ratio at $4,000 per county road mile and money will be allocated to counties with the lowest ratio first until all counties reach the target ratio. Any remaining funds from the two-thirds allocated are to be given to counties based on number of county road miles and county bridges; and
- One-third to be allocated to counties for the reconstruction of county bridges on the portion of the county highway system defined as a major collector route. Counties must submit project proposals to ODOT for evaluation against certain criteria as laid out in the measure.
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