As weather warms, potholes appear frequently in Flint

Cement breaks near a dividing line on Fourth Street in downtown Flint, leaving a pothole in the path for a left turn lane on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2014.

(Jake May | MLive.com)

LANSING, MI -- Michigan lawmakers are poised to pour extra money into roads this year in response to a brutal winter and unanswered calls for long-term funding -- but the size of the one-time fix is up for debate.

The state Senate last week approved a supplemental spending bill that would send $100 million to state, county and local road agencies that are already tapping their summer budgets to pay for salt and snow removal.

Through January, the Michigan Department of Transportation had used 85 percent more salt, 85 percent more sand and 145 percent more liquid melting material than last year.

The Senate plan would tap the Road and Risks Reserve Fund, which was set up last year via appropriation, and does not actually represent new money.

The House may up the ante. A substitute spending bill expected to see a committee vote Wednesday afternoon

includes $100 million in general fund money for road maintenance. It would also use all $115 million left in the reserve fund for priority construction projects around the state.

"If we can figure out a way to put more into roads, that's an immediate need," House Appropriations Committee chairman Joe Havemen (R-Holland) said Tuesday, reiterating his personal preference to devote more money to roads.

"That's a tangible benefit for our citizens, and we should be talking about it now. People ought to be planning their projects for the summer. If we wait too long, if we wait for a May supplemental, it may not translate into asphalt this summer."

Despite the proposal for increased road funding, the overall House supplemental bill is smaller in scope than that approved by the Senate. It would appropriate $193.4 million from the general fund, -- as opposed to $264 million in the Senate bill -- and may lead to a conference committee where the chambers try to iron out their differences.

The smaller price tag is largely a result of removing $114 million in funding for the Department of Community Health to make up for unexpectedly low revenues from the state's Health Insurance Claims Assessment tax. The House is hoping to solve the HICA shortfall in separate legislation, including an auto insurance reform proposal announced last week.

The House plan also strips from the Senate bill $6.7 million in state funding for an infant mortality research and treatment center run by the Detroit Medical Center, along with $2 million in administrative start-up funding for the Regional Transit Authority of Metro Detroit, which was created by state statute in 2013 but has not yet gotten off the ground.

Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee have expressed an interest in increasing current-year infrastructure road funding, but they've also blasted the Republican majority for failing to find a long-term revenue stream.

State Rep. Sam Singh of East Lansing referenced "the failure of leadership by Republicans to find a comprehensive plan for roads."

Rep. Brandon Dillon compared Leonard Street in his hometown Grand Rapids to a downhill slalom ski course in need of serious grooming.

"There's potholes everywhere," Dillon told MLive on Monday. "These roads are in terrible shape. I certainly support getting more money out this year, but at some point, we've got to get to a long-term answer."

Republican Gov. Rick Snyder has pushed the Legislature to find more than $1 billion a year in additional funding for roads and bridges. Last year, he proposed an increase in fuel taxes and registration fees. Leadership on both sides of the aisle were invited to the table, but they failed to come to an agreement on a revenue plan.

Snyder's proposed 2015 budget would devote $139.1 million from the general fund to roads and bridges -- along with an extra $40 million for annual highway maintenance -- but it does not include the sort of long-term request he asked for each of the last two years.

While Snyder continues to stress the need for future funding, his proposed budget is an acknowledgement that lawmakers are unlikely to approve a new revenue mechanism in an election year.

Instead, many are pushing to use part of the budget surplus for a tax cut.

Lance Binoniemi of the Michigan Infrastructure and Transportation Association, a construction trade group that advocates for increased funding, said he generally supports any supplemental maintenance appropriation but is not giving up hope for a longer-term funding plan.

"I think we're kidding ourselves if we think it's actually going to fix the roads," Binoniemi said of the $100 million Senate bill. "It will help provide some communities with some necessary money to fill potholes, but a lot of these roads are in a condition where they need to be reconstructed."

The same winter weather that has stretched road maintenance budgets is also poised to create a massive pothole season, according to Michigan Department of Transportation Director Kirk Steudle, who has warned that ice buildup underneath the roads may lead to "one of the biggest pavement breakups that we've ever seen in our lifetime."

The business community, which relies on roads to transport goods, continues to lobby for a long-term road funding solution, and a recent statewide poll suggested that more Michigan residents would prefer a portion of the state surplus go to roads than an income tax cut.

MITA, meanwhile, is in the midst of its second annual "pothole pocketbook contest," which provides winning motorists with up to $500 for vehicle repair costs and raises awareness about road conditions.

"This is the first time I think we've seen such a public outcry," said Bionemeni. "It's not only because of the harsh winter, it's because we've underinvested in roads for decades."

Jonathan Oosting is a Capitol reporter for MLive Media Group. Email him, find him on Google+ or follow him on Twitter.