Toll Roads Lobbyist’s Contract Cut to 1 Year

Orange County toll road officials on Thursday pared a proposed contract with a lobbyist, awarding him a one-year, $300,000 contract to influence lawmakers in Washington and secure federal funding for the Foothill and Eastern toll road projects.

The contract is a third of what agency staff members had recommended for Jim McConnell, who since 1980 has successfully lobbied for millions of dollars within the highly competitive appropriations bills passed each year by Congress.

The original proposal was for an $800,000, three-year contract that would have pushed McConnell’s combined annual income from county public entities to nearly $700,000.

Orange County Supervisor Todd Spitzer said that, while McConnell’s accomplishments in Washington have been “invaluable,” there is no reason a contract should be approved for three years.

“I don’t want to send the message that I’m not completely satisfied with (McConnell’s) work,” Spitzer said at the Transportation Corridor Agencies meeting Thursday. “I just believe this . . . is a big-ticket item that we need to pay particular attention to and three years is just a little too far out for me.”

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Spitzer’s suggestion to give McConnell $270,000 from the agency responsible for building the Foothill and Eastern toll roads and $30,000 from the San Joaquin Hills toll road was approved unanimously by the board instead.

The change will allow TCA officials to review the contract each year, spokeswoman Lisa Tellis said. Spitzer also called for better reporting of McConnell’s expenditures.

McConnell, who also represents the Orange County Transportation Authority and the Orange County Water District, was successful in getting federal commitments of $1.5 billion to widen the Santa Ana Freeway and $1.3 billion for the Santa Ana River flood-control project.

Because both of the county’s toll roads are still under construction and might be eligible for federal money or lines of credit, McConnell’s skills are needed in Washington, TCA officials said.

“He’s done exceptional work, and we need him out there,” board member Mike Ward said.