1.1A resolution
1.2expressing the sense of the Senate requesting that the United States Secretary of
1.3Transportation redirect federal funds from Southwest Light Rail to a block grant to
1.4fund other transit projects in the state.
1.5WHEREAS, efficient, affordable, and accessible public transportation is an essential
1.6component of a thriving and robust economy; and
1.7WHEREAS, the Minnesota Senate supports public investment in transportation infrastructure
1.8that is cost-effective, sustainable, and can adjust to changing demographics as well as readily adopt
1.9innovative technology; and
1.10WHEREAS, the proposed Southwest Light Rail Transit Project ("SWLRT"), an extension
1.11of the Metro Green Line, if built at a capital cost of nearly $2,000,000,000 will be by far the single
1.12largest public works project in Minnesota's history; and
1.13WHEREAS, SWLRT, as planned, will not be affordable, accessible, sustainable, or adjustable
1.14as transportation needs change, nor can it readily adopt newer and more affordable technologies;
1.15and
1.16WHEREAS, the Metropolitan Council's process regarding SWLRT has been widely perceived
1.17by the public and by the Minnesota Senate as high-handed, opaque, deceptive, and intended to
1.18exclude meaningful public participation and legislative oversight; and
1.19WHEREAS, the Metropolitan Council has represented that SWLRT will be funded through
1.20a mix of federal, state, and local sources, with funds from Minnesota taxpayers making up
1.21approximately one-half of the total cost to construct the project; and
1.22WHEREAS, the Metropolitan Council, a wholly unelected body, has, at the Governor's
1.23direction, engaged in a series of maneuvers that it has publicly acknowledged are intended to avoid
1.24meaningful legislative review and public scrutiny of SWLRT; and
2.1WHEREAS, the Minnesota Legislature has not held a single vote nor passed any act that
2.2could be interpreted as legislative approval of SWLRT; and
2.3WHEREAS, the Metropolitan Council's current SWLRT funding scheme of utilizing
2.4Certificates of Participation, a form of indebtedness, is a self-proclaimed attempt to circumvent the
2.5right of the Minnesota Legislature to evaluate and authorize SWLRT; and
2.6WHEREAS, the Metropolitan Council's utilization of Certificates of Participation further
2.7constitutes an express breach of its promise to the Minnesota Legislature and to the Federal Transit
2.8Administration that it would not resort to such a financing mechanism in the absence of legislative
2.9authorization; and
2.10WHEREAS, the Metropolitan Council's source of funds for repayment of the Certificates of
2.11Participation is not fully known, but will ultimately be at the expense of other, more meritorious
2.12transportation needs; and
2.13WHEREAS, notwithstanding overwhelming evidence of the upside-down cost-benefit of
2.14SWLRT, it is the Metropolitan Council's stated expectation that the Minnesota Legislature will
2.15provide 50 percent of the ongoing SWLRT net operating subsidy in perpetuity, as provided under
2.16current statute; and
2.17WHEREAS, the proposed light rail system bypasses the most densely populated, most
2.18transit-dependent, largely minority populations in the metro area, even though the Twin Cities area
2.19is home to some of the worst racial disparities in America; and
2.20WHEREAS, SWLRT, by bypassing transit-dependent populations, will result in fewer
2.21dependable riders, lower fare box revenue, and missed opportunities for underserved populations
2.22to access jobs and important regional resources; and
2.23WHEREAS, SWLRT will replace the existing SouthWest Transit bus service, which is a
2.24popular and heavily utilized transit option that delivers riders at twice the speed of SWLRT; and
2.25WHEREAS, the current SWLRT plan proposes spending $260,000,000 for private freight
2.26rail right-of-way acquisitions and new freight rail infrastructure, would expand the Metropolitan
2.27Council's mission into freight rail operations, and raise unanswered questions about liability; and
2.28WHEREAS, if built, SWLRT will adversely affect the quality of the Minneapolis Chain of
2.29Lakes, a nationally recognized and lauded public amenity that is part of the National Scenic Byway
2.30that serves and delights citizens from all parts of the State of Minnesota and visitors from around
2.31the nation and the world; and
2.32WHEREAS, the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board expressed grave concern and
2.33reservation about SWLRT intrusion into the Chain of Lakes, but was prevented from discharging
2.34its legal obligation to protect this fragile resource under Section 4(f) of the Federal Transportation
3.1Act when Minnesota's Governor threatened to withhold essential state financial support from the
3.2Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board; NOW, THEREFORE,
3.3BE IT RESOLVED that the Minnesota Senate declares that further investment in SWLRT
3.4would be counterproductive to the State of Minnesota's transportation and environmental interests,
3.5would be grossly wasteful, and would recklessly consume scarce transit resources well into the
3.6future for a project of questionable value.
3.7BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Minnesota Senate hereby further declares its
3.8opposition to the continued funding and construction of SWLRT as currently planned and calls for
3.9a halt to the project until a full financial projection and plan showing the sources of capital,
3.10operations, maintenance, and replacement funds, and understandable repayment mechanisms that
3.11do not unduly burden the taxpayers of Minnesota is prepared.
3.12BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Minnesota Legislature urges the United States
3.13Secretary of Transportation to redirect federal funding of SWLRT to a block grant of equal size to
3.14fund Minnesota's more pressing and more broadly supported transit options.
3.15BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of State of the State of Minnesota is directed
3.16to prepare enrolled copies of this resolution, to be authenticated by the Secretary's signature and
3.17that of the Chair of the Senate Rules and Administration Committee, and transmit them to the
3.18United States Secretary of Transportation and Minnesota's Senators and Representatives in Congress.