What are liquid fuels reimbursements and how do citizens benefit?
Cities, towns, boroughs and townships across Pennsylvania learned March 4 how much they would receive from the state this year in liquid fuels payments used to help maintain vital infrastructure.
One of those is Cranberry Township, which learned it would receive just over $1 million in liquid fuels reimbursements, by far more than any other municipality in Butler County.
The state will disperse liquid fuels reimbursements totaling $467.2 million, with Butler County municipalities receiving more than $8.16 million.
Cranberry will use its liquid fuels allotment this year strictly for road paving projects, and has already outlined a list of roads which are first in line to receive resurfacing, seal coating, and crack sealing. While resurfacing is paid for by liquid fuels money, the other two come out of the township’s general fund.
“We pay for guide rails and signs. The only thing liquid fuels pays for is paving,” said Kelly Maurer, Cranberry’s director of public works. “There are other eligible expenses, but we use it for paving.”
Maurer estimates the township will pave 4.6 miles of township roads this year. The liquid fuels allotment will take up $1 million of the $1.6 million the township has put aside in its 2024 fiscal year budget for road paving.
“We did just go over the $1 million mark,” Maurer said. “We have been increasing as we add miles every year. It has been in the $900,000 range for the past 10 years.”
Nearby Mars borough, with a population of 1,458, received $49,243 for 7.23 eligible miles of public road.
This was about what borough secretary Bonnie Forsythe expected to receive. However, she does say the borough’s liquid fuels allotment has slightly decreased in recent years, unlike Cranberry Township.
“I’m not sure why. In fact, I think a few years ago we actually added a little bit of road,” Forsythe said. “I'm not sure what the difference is based on.”
According to PennDOT, the formula for determining each municipality’s amount is based on both population and eligible miles of public road. Eligible roads must be able to safely accommodate vehicles traveling at least 15 mph.
Cherry Township, in the northern part of the county, will receive $141,738 for 38.52 miles of eligible roads — some of which is still gravel and dirt. The township, located east of Slippery Rock, has a population of 1,054.
Like Mars, Cherry Township has seen its liquid fuels allotment decrease in recent years. Township secretary Carolyn Yeager believes electric cars are the reason for the decline.
“It’s been going down,” Yeager said. “It’s because of the electric cars, that’s what they’re telling us. There’s not as much gasoline being purchased.”
Forward Township, not far from Cranberry or Mars, is the recipient of $169,700 for 35.4 miles of eligible road. According to township manager Tom Hartwig, this is $1,200 less than the township received last year.
“The funds are pretty critical to our budget,” Hartwig said. “We will use 80% of it for road paving and seal coating projects.”
Like Cranberry, Mars uses its share of the liquid fuels funds mainly for paving its public roads whenever necessary. However, this isn’t all the borough has used the funds for recently.
“There has been a year or two where we've either paid off a piece of equipment or purchased a piece of equipment with it,” Forsythe said. “That's one of the permitted uses.”
According to PennDOT, municipalities are allowed to use up to one-fifth of their liquid fuels allocation to purchase “major equipment.”
In fact, some years, Mars hasn’t used much of its allocation at all.
“There's no minimum required amount that you have to use each year,” Forsythe says. “In fact, there have been some years where we've carried the balance over to the next.”
Cherry Township, meanwhile, expects to use most of its allotment to perform tar-and-chip and gravel patching work on its road, with the rest going toward a payment for a truck which is on a yearly loan to the township.
“It goes mainly for road repairs, gravel patching, and we try to do a little bit of tar-and-chip each year depending on how much we have available,” Yeager said.
According to Maurer, Cranberry Township does not receive a penny of liquid fuels reimbursements until the end of the year.
“At the end of the year after we have paved, we have to show all of the receipts, and we submit that for reimbursement,” Maurer said. “So we have to spend the money first.”
By contrast, Hartwig said Forward Township received its share by direct deposit at the start of this month.
“This is a very helpful program for not only us but for all municipalities in the commonwealth and a nice benefit for taxpayers,” Hartwig said. “Seldom do taxpayers realize that this allotment goes for road infrastructure improvements and helps keep their taxes down.”
