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Private Roads Don't Deserve Public Dollars

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 13, 2008

The long-running debate about what to do with private dirt roads in need of repair or maintenance in unincorporated Pasco County, which county commissioners plan to tackle once again, needs a jolt of common sense.

First, private roads are just that - privately owned by landowners who either own property along them or live there.

Second, county tax dollars, in general, should not be used to repair or maintain them because they're not part of the county's network.

It should be simple, but it's not for some county officials, notably Commissioner Pat Mulieri, who just don't seem to get it.

The Florida Attorney General's Office, the state's top legal adviser, and the courts have ruled over the years that public money only can be spent on public roads and other public infrastructure.

There is a notable exception: During declared states of emergency - such as hurricanes, floods and other disasters, or imminent danger - government can use public money to clear or repair private roads.

This exception makes sense because government has a duty to protect residents' health and welfare during emergencies. But a state of emergency doesn't amount to occasional situations where private roads are impassable or in bad shape, and county officials should not use tax dollars to repair them.

No one should fault county staff and commissioners for wanting to help residents whose private dirt roads are in bad shape. But they need to draw a line. These residents have several options other than leaning on county government.

They can elect to participate in the county's paving assessment program, for which they will be fairly charged. They can petition the county to accept their roads into the county network. They can join together to hire a private contractor to pave or repair their road.

Or, as the attorney general's office has also ruled, they can ask the county to fix or pave their roads and then reimburse the county for the costs when the work is complete.

Residents who live along private dirt roads should not expect taxpayer handouts. If they want their roads fixed or paved, they should have to pay - even in the form of special assessments imposed by the county.

True, many of them who live along the more than 500 miles of paved and dirt private roads in the county are taxpayers. But their, and others', tax dollars are used to build and improve public roads that benefit the entire public - such as state roads and major county arterials - and tax money should not be used to improve private roads along which a small percentage of residents live.

Nor should the county consider raising the local gasoline tax to generate money to pave, maintain or repair private roads.

Those residents should take it upon themselves to use the available options so their roads allow for the easy passage of emergency and other vehicles and a better quality of life.

The hang-up may be what constitutes a public road. For instance, if a road is owned by private property owners but the public is allowed to use it - no matter its length - does that make it a public road?

It's a question the county should ask the attorney general's office, whose rulings on using public dollars to repair private roads have been very clear over the years.

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