Gov. Asa Hutchinson is urging a committee looking at ways to increase highway funding to think creatively, but is also warning them to think about the politics of trying to find new revenue.
Speaking at the inaugural meeting of the 20-member working group he formed to look at the state's highway funding shortfall, the Republican governor said Wednesday he wants the panel to look at how other states are paying for their road needs. The working group is set to deliver its recommendations by mid-December.
Hutchinson formed the group earlier this year after a highway funding bill he opposed stalled in the Legislature. That proposal would have gradually diverted revenue from auto-related items to highways.
Hutchinson said he hopes the panel will come up with multiple funding recommendations.
