RG 089:032, Transportation Accountability Board

Inventory of Records

Finding aid prepared by Connecticut State Library staff.

Copyright © 2012 by the Connecticut State Library

Historical Note

In light of public controversies over hiring of outside consultants and the collapse of the Mianus River bridge on the Connecticut Turnpike, the Republican-controlled General Assembly enacted P.A. 85-1 during a special session in July, 1985, creating the Transportation Accountability Board as an independent, non-partisan body charged with overseeing the operations of the Connecticut Department of Transportation (DOT).

P.A. 85-1 empowered the Board to do the following: 1) Review for approval or disapproval and monitor all consultant and construction contracts entered into by DOT under the $5.6 billion Infrastructure Renewal Program (IRP); 2) Oversee implementation of an effective, on-going road and bridge maintenance program; 3) Review and approve DOT's annual plan for IRP; 4) Select and oversee the work of a management consultant, hired to review and make recommendations for improvements in DOT's organization and procedures; and 5) Issue progress reports to the Governor, the General Assembly, DOT, and other state agencies. If the Commissioner of DOT disagreed with any Board's decision regarding contracts, the law provided an appeal process to the Governor.

The law granted the Board the right to hire with available funds "such consultants, technical assistance, research and other personnel" to assist in its examinations and directed to the Board to consult with the Legislative Program Review and Investigations Committee. Members discovering that "unauthorized, illegal, or irregular" activities were being "contemplated" but had not been "consummated" were instructed to report the facts to the Governor, the Legislative Program Review Committee, and Transportation Committee of the General Assembly. Records of budgeted agencies regarding transportation matters were to be made available to the Board except in cases covered by confidentiality provisions of statutes and regulations.

The Board held its first meeting on January 8, 1986, but it was not until April 1, 1986 that an executive director and secretary were hired. Plans to add two engineers and three clerical assistants to the staff were not fully implemented in 1986. Thus, the Board operated with a reduced staff in 1986. In general, the Board held meetings approximately once a week. During 1986, the Board reviewed 106 construction contracts, rejecting only 4, and reviewed and approved all 46 consultant contracts. The final report of the management consultant hired to review the organization an operations of DOT was issued in November, 1986.

The Board operated amid charges and countercharges emanating from an atmosphere of political partisanship. In June, 1987, Governor O'Neill signed the Public Act 87-300 passed by the Democratic-controlled General Assembly abolishing the Board as of July 1, 1987.

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Scope and Content

Includes meeting material, 1986-1987; and subject files, 1986-1987.

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Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

Some of these records are stored at an off-site facility and therefore may not be available on a same-day basis.

See the Rules and Procedures for Researchers Using Archival Records and Secured Collections policy.

Restrictions on Use

See the Reproduction and Publications of State Library Collections policy.

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Related Material

RG 089, Dept. of Transportation, 1941-2003, bulk 1973-2003
RG 089:001, State Highway Department, 1894-1975
RG 089:010, State Boundary Line Perambulations, 1965-1997
RG 089:011, Aerial photographs, see the Research Guide to Aerial Photographs at the Connecticut State Library
RG 089:024, Connecticut Transportation Authority, 1956-1973
RG 089:030, State Traffic Commission, 1935-1995
RG 089:031, Connecticut Public Transportation Commission, 1980-2001
RG 089:037, Commissioners of Steamship Terminals, 1915

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Index Terms

Organizations:

Subjects:

Document Types:

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Administrative Information

Provenance

These records came to the State Library the week of August 10-14, 1987.

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Container List