SC Transportation Dept to catch up on bills

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina’s transportation secretary says state highway contractors will be paid on time after the Federal Highway Administration made advanced payments to his cash-strapped agency.

The federal money received Wednesday will allow the Department of Transportation to catch up on bills that contractors submitted and weren’t paid within the 30 working day requirement state law requires.

Transportation Secretary Robert J. St. Onge is briefing legislators on the problem Wednesday. He is reviewing how the state pays for contractor work. He blamed delayed payments on a cash crunch created when too many bills came due before state and federal funds were available to pay them.

St. Onge also says problems with a new state accounting system also caused the agency to miss loan payments with the State Infrastructure Bank.