Governor Tony Evers and the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) today announced that municipalities across the state received nearly $130 million in the fourth quarterly payments for 2021 for General Transportation, Connecting Highway, and Expressway Policing Aids.
For calendar year 2020, local governments received more than $505 million in general transportation aids (GTA) financial assistance to support transportation related projects, a 10% increase over calendar year 2019 allocations. Total funding for all local programs makes up almost one-third of the state transportation budget.
“Working cooperatively with local governments is essential to a good transportation system that delivers all the way through the last mile,” WisDOT Secretary Craig Thompson said. “We are dedicated to making good investments together that improve safety, economic opportunity and quality of life.”
The local assistance increase was part of more than $465 million in additional funding for transportation projects included in the last (2019-2021) state budget, which was the largest dedication of new, ongoing revenue to the transportation fund in a generation. In addition to the 10% GTA increase, the budget included $320 million in additional funding for the State Highway Rehabilitation program and provided $90 million in one-time funding for the Local Roads Improvement Program-Supplement grant program.
The fourth quarter payments, made on October 4, totaled $129,698,459.77 and included:
- General Transportation Aids – $126,426,608.70 to all local units of government
- Connecting Highway Aids – $3,015,876.07 in CHA to 116 eligible municipalities.
- Expressway Policing Aids – $255,975.00 to Milwaukee County
General Transportation Aids help cover the costs of constructing, maintaining, and operating roads and streets under local jurisdiction. Connecting Highway Aids reimburse municipalities for maintenance and traffic control of certain state highways within municipalities.
Quarterly payments for cities, villages and towns are sent the first Monday in January, April, July and October. County payments are made in three installments, with 25 percent of the total annual payment on the first Monday in January; 50 percent on the first Monday in July; and 25 percent on the first Monday in October.
