Utah transit board member questions plan to borrow $88.5M when the agency is $2B in debt

Utah Transit Authority board member Brent Taylor raised red flags Wednesday about agency plans to borrow $88.5 million next year, adding to its $2 billion debt that already makes UTA spend $1 of every $3 in its budget for finance payments.

Taylor, the mayor of North Ogden who often acts as a maverick on the board, said the bulk of that new borrowing is for facility maintenance, which most local governments handle through normal operating budgets without borrowing — akin to not going into debt to pay for groceries.

“That raises a red flag,” he said. “I’m very concerned.”

But UTA administrators said the borrowing is for expensive replacement facilities that will last 20 to 50 years — not daily maintenance items — so they consider it a proper use of bonding.

UTA President and CEO Jerry Benson said an example use of the borrowed money would be to replace a 20-year-old rail switch and TRAX rails at 400 South and Main Street in downtown Salt Lake City. It is now at the end of its life span.

Read more: http://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2017/10/25/maverick-utah-transit-board-member-questions-plan-to-borrow-885m-when-the-agency-is-2b-in-debt/