Officials in Prince George’s County are blasting a demand by the administration of Gov. Larry Hogan (R) that the county submit detailed studies on its preferred transportation projects to be eligible for state funding.
Baltimore County officials have raised similar concerns, saying the state is responsible for many of these studies and is not giving local governments enough time to produce the requested information.
It is the latest wrinkle in the long-running battle between the governor and Democrats over funding projects to fix roads and relieve traffic.
Democratic state lawmakers pushed through a law this year requiring the state to score and rank major transportation projects before awarding funding, over Hogan’s fierce opposition and veto.
They said it would bring accountability to major state spending after the governor redirected money from transit to road projects in primarily rural and suburban areas. Hogan contends that the ranking system imposes unnecessary bureaucracy that would hamper improvements to state infrastructure.
Now the two sides disagree over how to implement the law.