House Bill 817 - Strategic Transportation Investments

• Establishes new Strategic Prioritization Funding Plan for transportation investments allocating Highway Trust Fund and federal aid funds as: 40% for Statewide Strategic Mobility Projects, 30% for Regional Impact Projects (by population distribution), and 30% for Division Need Projects (equal distribution to each DOT division).

• Creates seven distribution regions across North Carolina and defines eligible projects for each funding category, including interstate highways, National Highway System routes, commercial airports, freight rail corridors, and public transportation systems with specific funding caps.

• Implements quantitative scoring criteria (benefit-cost, congestion, safety, economic competitiveness, freight, multimodal, pavement/lane/shoulder conditions) for project selection with 100-point scales, plus qualitative local input for regional and division projects.

• Modifies secondary roads program by repealing separate allocation formulas and establishing statewide prioritization for unpaved road paving; allocates $15 million nonrecurring and $12 million recurring Highway Fund dollars for secondary road construction in fiscal year 2013-2014.

• Changes municipal Powell Bill funding from specific tax rate percentage to appropriation by law; authorizes municipalities to use allocations for street maintenance, construction, or to match federal funds for bicycle and pedestrian projects.