Budgeting and Appropriations | Annual budget; fiscal year begins July 1. MDOT's annual budget request is approved by the elected, three-member Transportation Commission before it is submitted to the Legislature. |
Bonding or Pay-as-You-Go | Combination of bonding and pay-as-you-go financing. |
State-Level Funding Provided for DOT Budgets | FY 2011 (approved): $575.0 million |
Allocation of Federal Transportation Funds to the DOT | Federal transportation funds are allocated to MDOT through a state legislative appropriation at the program or category level. |
Allocation of State Transportation Funds to the DOT | State taxes and fees dedicated to transportation are deposited directly into the State highway Fund, but still must be appropriated annually to MDOT by the Legislature. |
Traditional State Funding and Finance for Highways | Fuel taxes; vehicle registration/license/title fees; truck weight fees; interest income; contractors' tax on certain highway projects; lubricating oil tax; general obligation bonds; revenue bonds. |
State Funding and Finance for Other Modes | Transit has no dedicated state funding but has received allocations from the Multi-Modal Transportation Improvement Fund, which is funded by MDOT out of its state source special funds that are not otherwise dedicated (i.e., a portion of the fuel tax, truck and bus taxes, and other). Rail: Tax on locomotive fuel. Aviation: Tax on aviation fuel (distributed to the Mississippi Aeronautics Commission). Ports: General funds. Bridges: Included with highways. |
Innovative Transportation Funding and Finance | GARVEE bonds; private activity bonds (PABs) (allocated); Build America Bonds; PPPs (authorized in statute); design-build (authorized in statute); advance construction; bridge credits (in-kind or "soft match"). |
Dedicated/Restricted State Funds and Revenues | State statute indicates that gasoline taxes are to be used to provide highways, streets and roads (Miss. Code Ann. §27-55-3). Fuel taxes and certain other transportation-related taxes and fees including vehicle registration/license/title fees and truck weight fees-are dedicated to the State Highway Fund and can be used for MDOT operations and programs. Any bond proceeds usually are dedicated to a specific project or program by the bond enabling legislation. The state also has a Multi-Modal Transportation Improvement Fund, which is distributed to ports, airports, transit and railroads (Miss. Code Ann. §§65-1-701 et seq.). The Legislature established this fund in 2001 (2001 Miss. Laws, Chap. 552) but has not appropriated any funding to it since its passage; MDOT has chosen to fund the program from its state revenues. |
DOT Authorized to Retain Surplus Funds | Yes. All state fees and taxes dedicated to transportation and all federal reimbursements on federal projects are deposited directly into the State Highway Fund and retained until spent. |
Legislative Approval Required to Move Funds Between Projects | No legislative approval is required. |
Transportation Funding Allocations through Local Aid | Local entities receive state transportation funds through statutory formulas. MDOT allocates part of its federal funds to local projects through the Local Public Agencies program, and part through the separate Office of State Aid. A portion of state fuel tax revenues is distributed to counties for local bridge and highway projects through the Office of State Aid by a statutory formula based on equal distribution, rural road miles and rural population (Miss. Code Ann. §27-65-75); another portion is received directly by cities and counties for transportation projects (Miss. Code Ann. §27- 5-101 and §27-5-103). Cities and counties also receive part of the state sales tax, which can be used for any local government purpose, including transportation. |