Members of the Legislature’s Appropriations Committee meet today to address proposed bonding for myriad state projects.

Among them are requests to seek voters’ approval to borrow against the state’s good credit to fund transportation upgrades, water and sewer system work, research-anddevelopment initiatives, and the Land For Maine’s Future program.

Gov. Paul LePage balks at considering any new bond package until the budget for 2013 can be balanced. That can’t happen until his administration calculates the impact of gaffes in the Department of Health and Human Services and other questions the executive branch failed to answer for the Legislature before it adjourned until May 15.

Decisions about borrowing can’t wait. The state’s crumbling infrastructure won’t. Our rugged climate won’t go easy on roads and bridges because state leaders want to make a political statement about debt service — or because the people we elected to manage the state’s affairs can’t manage to do so.

For decades, state government — led by Democratic, Republican and independent governors — has relied upon bonding to underwrite bridge and highway upkeep. Never able to scrounge up enough money from the general fund to keep Maine’s transportation system safe and passable, generations of lawmakers treated bonding for road repairs like most people treat home ownership — as an investment in the future worth borrowing for now.

The LePage administration and the Republican-led 125th Legislature took no significant steps to change that situation. They have shown no interest in new taxes, fees, tolls or vehicle registration surcharges dedicated to protecting the state’s vulnerable transportation infrastructure from the elements or simple decay.

Lacking any other viable revenue source, bonding for public works projects represents a responsible investment in safety, as well as both short- and long-term jobs creation. Federal matches that bring as much as $9 to Maine for every $1 the state spends add further value.

In a 2009 report titled “The Difference is Night and Day: Why Investing in Highways and Bridges is an Investment in Prosperity,” former Maine state economist Laurie Lechance wrote, “If Maine’s economy is going to thrive in the coming century, state leaders must recognize the benefits of a safe and efficient transportation infrastructure and invest to protect those benefits.”

That’s not happening. Maine, which lags behind the rest of the nation in whatever recovery from the 2008 recession can be discerned, can’t afford to fall further behind by ignoring immediate infrastructure demands.

Refusing to send infrastructure bond questions to Maine’s voters is tantamount to knowing that your roof leaks and, instead of securing a low-interest home improvement loan to fix the problem, hoping that it won’t rain or snow for a year.

Lawmakers did not present any bond questions to the state’s voters last year. It would be irresponsible to deny voters an opportunity to make their own choices about whether bonds represent a sage investment in the future or a frivolous expense at this time.

letters@timesrecord.com