Limestone County Commissioner Ben Harrison is on a mission to find more revenue to care for the county’s roads, and he hopes his fellow commissioners will join him.

Harrison, who represents District 4, implored commissioners to explore new ways to pay for road projects and equipment. He issued his plea at Wednesday’s regularly scheduled work session.

“We’ve got anywhere from a half-billion to a billion dollars’ worth of infrastructure we have to maintain,” he said. “It’s the lifeblood of our economy.”

Annually, Harrison said he receives just 27 percent of the funds he needs to keep his roads properly maintained. He pointed to 2011 figures provided by the Association of County Commissions of Alabama that said counties need $9.25 million per year to maintain road surfaces. Limestone County receives $1.3 million each year from gas tax revenue, which is spent on county roads.

He said other county governments draw money from the general fund to help prop up road expenditures. He said there may be other sources of revenue, including new taxes, he may be open to if they’re earmarked for county road maintenance.

“I hate debt, but I would entertain going into debt if it would lower our long-term costs,” he said. “If there’s a fairly short payback that’s reasonable, I would look at that, but I don’t think we have to. I think it should be a last resort.”

Harrison said he didn’t want to have a more detailed discussion without District 1 Commissioner Stanley Hill being present. Hill was due to have hip replacement surgery Wednesday morning.

Weed control

Elsewhere Wednesday, commissioners heard from Corey Craig, CEO of Roadside Inc. The Auburn-based company advises the county on its weed spraying program.

Craig asked the commission to consider switching to a new chemical that would cut the county’s spraying efforts from three sprayings per year to just two. He said it could save the county money in the long run because it would be using less manpower and gas.

The new Bayer-manufactured chemical works best on broadleaf weeds, Craig said.

Harrison and Commissioners Jason Black of District 3 and Steve Turner of District 2 praised the current weed-control efforts in their respective districts because it’s led to less bush hogging and mowing.

“Mowing is becoming a roadside safety hazard for us dealing with the traffic because it’s increasing,” Turner said. “The less time I have a tractor on the road, the less I have to worry about one of my guys causing a wreck or being in a wreck.”

Other business

An item that will come up on the agenda for Monday’s regular meeting is the purchase of 10 phones and an ethernet switch for the Limestone County Extension Office, which operates out of a county-owned building on Market Street. The estimated cost for the new system is $5,042.88.

Harrison said the new phone system should help reduce the expenses for the Extension Office, which previously sought a $5,000 appropriation from the county but was denied.

The commission meets again at 10 a.m. Monday at the Clinton Street courthouse annex.