U.__Make a contract or enter into an agreement with or provide certifications and assurances to the department, or any 3rd party, necessary in connection with the determination of department projects; the issuance of bonds or other obligations pursuant to section 1968, subsection 2- A; the pledge of revenues to the payment of these bonds or obligations; or the payment of the costs or a portion of the costs of department projects.

9.__Cooperation with department.__The authority may issue bonds or other obligations to pay for department projects.__These amounts are considered necessary for use by the department for construction, reconstruction, operation and maintenance of all roads on the state highway system, which serve and benefit users of the East-West Highway by providing direct and indirect access to and from the East-West Highway as part of the integrated highway system.__Due to the utilization of the state highway system by users of the East-West Highway, the East-West Highway and its users have received and will continue to receive a benefit from, or have caused and will continue to cause, or both, the State acting by and through the department to incur costs for the construction, operation and maintenance of the state highway system, which provides direct and indirect access to and from the East-West Highway to areas in the State, for which the State may properly be and should be compensated from the tolls to be collected.__The authority is maintained to carry out the purposes of this chapter in cooperation with the department.

10.__ Governmental function. It is declared that the purposes of this chapter are public and that the authority must be regarded as performing a governmental function in carrying out this chapter.

11.__Transportation policy. Transportation planning decisions, capital investment decisions and project decisions of the authority are governed by and must comply with the transportation policy set forth in section 73 and rules implementing that policy.

12.__Appropriation. On or before January 31st of each year, the authority shall present to each regular session of the Legislature for its approval a budget for the operating expenses