Los Banos City Council's decision to suspend regional transportation impact fees will continue the Los Banos Bypass' molasses-like pace and slow all other area plans, a regional official said.</p><p>Lori Flanders, public information officer for the Merced County Association of Governments, said with very little federal funding available, local projects hinge on local funding.</p><p>"It will take longer for us to bring regional projects to construction," Flanders said.</p><p>The priority of the bypass, which is No. 1, could change if decided by MCAG's governing board, Flanders said.</p><p>Los Banos has contributed $1.7 million, the third most behind the city of Merced and Merced County, to the regional transportation fund. Flanders said losing the third largest contributor has not caused other jurisdictions to lose faith in MCAG, but said many of them don't know Los Banos has pulled funding. </p><p>"We haven't received notice that Los Banos has completely pulled out," Flanders said. "And, I believe, the city of Livingston has expressed interest in beginning to pay into RTIF."</p><p>Dos Palos Mayor Pro Tem Johnny Mays, who is a member of the MCAG governing board, said he expects the Dos Palos City Council to suspend its contributions to the regional fund, which comes from developer fees, at Tuesday's meeting. He said any potential projects in a bad economy need to be free of "stumbling blocks."</p><p>"It's sort of a survival mechanism," Mays said.</p><p>Dos Palos' contributions to the fund are more than $100,000.</p><p>Mays said he questions whether the bypass should remain the top priority for the MCAG governing board, and whether the people of Los Banos want a bypass. He cited the City Council's decision on Jan. 4 to pull support for a project to widen Highway 152 near Casa de Fruta.</p><p>"There's mixed signals coming from the City Council," Mays said.</p><p>Supervisor Jerry O'Banion, who also sits on the MCAG governing board, said he would have preferred the Los Banos City Council come up with a different plan for RTIF.</p><p>"I was kind of disappointed they decided to go forward on the suspension," O'Banion said.</p><p>O'Banion would not speculate on a governing board decision to change the priority of the bypass. </p><p>Merced County continues to contribute to the regional transportation fund, supplying about $2.6 million to it.</p><p>Mayor Mike Villalta, an MCAG governing board member, said the Los Banos Bypass is No. 1 in name only. He said the bypass is a moving target, because MCAG keeps changing the rules.</p><p>MCAG put $2.3 million set aside for the Los Banos Bypass toward the Merced-Atwater Expressway project in May, and may contribute $7 million to the widening of Highway 152.</p><p>"Were we No. 1 because we were paying the RTIF, or were we No. 1 because it's needed?" Villalta said.</p><p>Enterprise reporter Thaddeus Miller can be reached at (209) 388-6562 or by email at tmiller@losbanos</p><p>enterprise.com.