Shoddy CA-MI NITC pact puts MI tax dollars on the line

At this point, the fate of millions of Michigan taxpayer dollars lay on a handshake and a wink between the governor and the Canadian prime minister.

In an interview published in today’s Crain’s Detroit Business, Governor Snyder confirms what we’ve warned against from the very beginning: Canada’s pledge to cover cost overruns on the New International Trade Crossing (NITC) is nowhere to be found in the agreement.

Unfortunately, the likelihood of such cost overruns is all too real — a U.S. Department of Transportation study found that overruns on projects of this type average 61%.

And while the governor says he “expects such an agreement to be hammered out at some point later in the process,” there’s no way to know if Canada will still be so keen on shouldering such an enormous financial burden in years to come — particularly when Canada has the power to amend or terminate the Crossing Agreement at any time. (Don’t take our word for it — read pages 36, 37 and 40 for yourself.)

Michigan taxpayers are smart enough to see the NITC proposal for what it is: a massive financial gamble based on poor research and slipshod rhetoric.

Don’t let the governor play games with your tax dollars or our state’s financial future. This November, vote YES on 6.