Road commissioners set for test

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Considering the heat the Missouri State Highways and Transportation Commission has taken in recent years, serving on the panel that sets state transportation policy is in many ways a thankless job.

Though few disagree that Missouri's transportation system is woefully inadequate, there is no legislative or public consensus on how to fix the problems. And the fact that there are problems is -- rightly or wrongly -- laid at the feet of the commission.

So why would people want to serve on the commission and expose themselves to that criticism?

Bill McKenna of Crystal City, Mo., and Jim Anderson of Springfield, Mo., named to the panel last week by Gov. Bob Holden, both wonder the same thing and in separate interviews gave the identical answer: "That's a good question."

However, the two men, Democrats with strong personal ties to Holden, said that the issues facing the commission present tough challenges and that they flourish under such pressure.

"I have always liked challenges, and our transportation system is certainly at that stage," said McKenna. "I would like to help move us forward. I have no ax to grind, no hidden agenda. But I know our economy revolves around a good transportation system."

Said Anderson: "I really thrive on challenge. Maybe that sounds trite, but this is the most challenging time to serve on the commission."

Funding key issue

The key issue facing the commission is funding. Department of Transportation officials have long maintained at least another $1 billion a year in new revenue is needed to address the state's needs.

However, a proposed tax package to pump new money into MoDOT failed in the General Assembly this year. Foes of the plan pointed to a lack of trust in the commission due to past broken promises as the primary reason for their opposition.

That is why the Holden's choices for the commission have been closely watched.

In addition to McKenna and Anderson, who replace two commissioners whose terms ended Oct. 13, Holden will have another vacancy to fill on the six-member panel as of Dec. 1. Holden must appoint a Republican to maintain the commission's constitutionally mandated partisan balance.

Bipartisan support

State Sen. Morris Westfall, R-Halfway, has been a vocal critic of the commission, especially its recently departed chairman, S. Lee Kling of St. Louis. Westfall, who chairs the Senate Transportation Committee, helped block the tax proposal this year.

Westfall gave Holden high marks for his first two commission picks.

"I'm optimistic this is a step in the right direction on moving forward with a transportation plan for the state of Missouri," Westfall said. "They've both got a history of working out compromises and yet still standing for the principles they believe in."

While the new commissioners will begin serving immediately, they face confirmation by the Republican-controlled Senate in January. Both McKenna and Anderson are expected to win Senate approval.

McKenna, 55, is no stranger to that body, representing Jefferson County from 1993 until 1999, when he was forced out by term limits. He spent his last two years in the Senate as president pro tem, the chamber's top leadership post. He also served in the House of Representatives from 1983 to 1993. McKenna is the interim president of Jefferson College in Hillsboro, Mo.

"He was popular among both parties as a person of his word and a person you could work with," said Westfall, who served with McKenna in the Senate.

Likewise, Anderson enjoys a similar bipartisan reputation. Anderson, 52, has been president of the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce since 1988.

Constant fights over funding have created a rift between urban and rural interests, with each side claiming the other gets more than its fair share.

Compromise sought

As men who hail from counties that contain both rural and urban areas, the two hope to bridge the gap between the two camps.

"I believe I can forge some compromise in that area," Anderson said.

McKenna, who has Cape Girardeau ties having earned both his bachelor's and master's degrees from Southeast Missouri State University, said commissioners can't afford to hold parochial views.

"The importance of the commission is you come from a certain area of the state but you have to be statewide in your perception of things," McKenna said.

Both men agree with Holden that MoDOT needs more money but that transportation spending must also be increased for mass transit, rail, aviation and ports, not just roads and bridges.

How much money it would be feasible to ask voters for through a tax increase is an issue they said is best left in the hands of the Legislature.

"MoDOT's chief engineer keeps saying $1 billion," McKenna said. "I'm sure if we could get $1 billion it would make things very nice, but I'm not sure that is doable."

Anderson said that while he would prefer user fees -- fuel taxes and license fees -- continue to bear the brunt of transportation funding, such sources alone wouldn't provide the revenue the state needs.

"I just think it needs to be as innovative and broad-based revenue stream as possible," Anderson said.

As to the question of accountability, McKenna said MoDOT itself has never been tinged by scandal and has always run "a fairly squeaky clean" operation. Bad financial planning in the 1990s, however, caused the department to make promises it couldn't keep.

McKenna said the state needs to put those past failures behind it.

"Let's start something new here," McKenna said.

mpowers@semissourian.com

(573) 635-4608