Legislation that could change the state Department of Transportation's relationship with North Carolina cities has been shelved while DOT and city leaders try to become better friends.

DOT officials drafted the measure, which would make changes aimed at easing the department's cash flow problems and reducing state maintenance costs for city streets, Bruce Siceloff reports.

One provision would reclassify an estimated 4,700 miles of minor state-maintained roads inside city and town limits across the state, and start a process of shifting them to local government responsibility. Local elected officials have lobbied against that plan because it did not include  money to cover the added local road maintenance expense.

The bills also would change a once-per-year schedule used by DOT to distribute so-called Powell Bill funds for street maintenance costs to local towns and cities. DOT wants to spread out the payments to twice a year.

"We've parked that bill for the year — we're not going to run it," Sen. Clark Jenkins of Edgecombe County, sponsor of the Senate measure, said today.

More after the jump.

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The state may give back local road responsibilities.

During the Great Depression, North Carolina's state government took over the duties of paving and repairing local roads.

But facing high demand to fix the state's highways and bridges, the N.C. Department of Transportation is considering giving up that responsibility.

In most other states, county taxpayers are responsible for secondary roads.

A solution to move toward that system has been proposed by state Sens. Bob Rucho and Dan Clodfelter of Mecklenburg County. Their bill would have the counties take over about 64,000 of the 79,000 highway miles now maintained by the state.

Local property taxes would have to be raised to cover the expense. (N&O)

Remember the old road side signs that read "Your Tax Dollars at Work"?

Well, North Carolina will soon be posting signs at projects financed by the federal stimulus packaged called "Jobs Now," Rob Christensen reports.

"With every construction project that is beginning in North Carolina with the federal money that we will have a sign up that says "Jobs Now," Gov. Beverly Perdue told a meeting of black elected officials this morning in Raleigh.

"That is going to be the logo in North Carolina. We want peple to know that we are putting folks back to work," she said.

Where is North Carolina's federal stimulus money going?

A bimonthly report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office has a breakdown of where some of the stimulus money has gone so far:

* MEDICARE/MEDICAID: As of April 1, the state had drawn down $414.6 million extra for Medicare and Medicaid programs to offset the budget deficit.

* ROADS AND BRIDGES: As of April 16, the N.C. Department of Transportation had obligated about $165 million for 53 projects in economically distressed areas.

* EDUCATION: As of April 2, the state has been allocated about $952 million to fund education, but it has not yet determined how to spend it.

In addition, North Carolina expects to receive $80 million for worker training, $34.5 million for crime control grants and other money for a low-income housing tax credit program.

Overall, the state is expected to receive $6.1 billion.

Done wrong, an earmark can actually hurt North Carolina's roads.

Since 1989, a state law has required that road money be spent around the state according to a strict formula based in part on population.

That means that if an earmark comes through for a specific road, it will just end up displacing money for another road in the same area, said Gene Conti, state secretary of transportation.

"In some cases, it could displace something that is either more important in that area or a piece of a larger project that's needed," he said.

To prevent that, the state Department of Transportation prepares a list of projects that could be earmarked without problem in each Congressional district, he said.

Conti is not a big fan of earmarks, since they tie the state's hands on spending without increasing the overall pot of money. But there are a few he will seek.

More after the jump.

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North Carolina's transportation earmarks heavily favor cars.

Members of the state's Congressional delegation requested 74 federal appropriations worth $313.8 million for airports, trains, transit and roads.

Here's a breakdown:

ROADS: 40 requests worth $174.4 million. Projects range from $300,000 to fix a bridge in Montreat to $84.7 million to extend a road through Fort Bragg.

TRANSIT: 13 requests worth $67.2 million. Projects range from $500,000 to buy new hybrid buses for Asheville to $30 million to extend Charlotte's light-rail system.

AIRPORT: 15 requests worth $46.6 million. Projects range from $665,000 to address safety concerns at the Richmond County airport to $7.5 million to extend a runway in Oxford.

TRAINS: Six requests worth $25.6 million. Projects range from $166,000 for a new roof on the Gibson train depot to $9.5 million for a new stop in Lexington.

Gov. Beverly Perdue would cut funding for the N.C. Department of Transportation.

The proposed budget put forward today would reduce spending to $3.6 billion, down $300 million from last year.

Spending would drop for road construction and even more for road maintenance.

N&O transportation reporter Bruce Siceloff has more details on his "Crosstown Traffic" blog here.

What does North Carolina think?

The latest Elon University Poll shows significant agreement on a number of issues that are before the legislature.

Below, the percentage who agreed with a sentiment:

77: The state should make commuter rail available in urban areas.

74: The state should not charge a fee based on miles driven each year.

67: The state should ban smoking in public places, such as restaurants and bars.

— Support a $2 billion bond referendum for bridges and roads.

66: Offshore drilling should be allowed off the coast of North Carolina.

— Except in emergencies, it should be illegal to use a cell phone while driving.

The live phone poll of 758 residents was conducted Feb. 22-26. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.

After the jump, the rest of the results.

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* Conservative Civitas Institute finds 50 percent support, 36 percent oppose the $789 billion stimulus package in poll of 600 voters conducted Feb. 16-19.

* Gov. Beverly Perdue says $466 million in stimulus package spending on roads and bridges will create about 14,000 jobs in North Carolina.

* U.S. Sen. Richard Burr chosen to give the response to President Obama's weekly radio address; will be posted on YouTube. 

* Charlotte Observer columnist Jack Betts says voters liked Jim Hunt's "can-do approach" to education, etc., while they liked Jesse Helms' penny-pinching. 

* Historians unveil lengthy account of the original Isaac Hunter's Tavern, a dive bar that accidentally contributed to Raleigh being named state capital. (HT: Laura)

* The N.C. Department of Transportation will spend $38.6 million in the Charlotte area, comapred to $64 million in Eastern North Carolina. Mayor Pat McCrory is upset.

* The N.C. Budget and Tax Center, a liberal group, projects that the budget shortfall in 2009-2010 could be as high as $4.6 billion, or $3 billion after federal help.

* The N.C. Young Democrats will push for a smoking ban in restaurants, anti-school violence legislation and renewable energy tax credits today at the legislature.