Oberstar rejects two-stage reauthorization process

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood asked Congress Wednesday to consider passing an interim, 18-month surface transportation reauthorization bill to replenish the Highway Trust Fund while a long-term spending plan is crafted, but the chief House negotiator said such an approach "is not acceptable."
  

LaHood said the Highway Trust Fund, a victim of sharply reduced gas and diesel tax receipts during the recession and greater use of fuel-efficient vehicles, is expected to go into the red by the end of August. Obama administration officials have previously estimated the trust fund will experience up to a $17 billion shortfall through the end of fiscal year 2010, including a $5 billion to $7 billion deficit this year. That means the Department of Transportation will not have the money to meet its grant commitment to states for the remainder of the fiscal year.

  

Congress stepped in last fall with $8 billion from the general fund to keep the trust fund solvent and allow states to complete projects already approved. The existing SAFETEA-LU legislation promised $53.4 billion for road and transit improvements this year, but current user fees are only estimated to pay for $35.1 billion worth of investments if funding levels are carried over to 2010.
  

LaHood said in a statement after meeting with congressional leaders that he wants the next surface transportation bill to require more rigorous criteria and cost-benefit analysis to determine whether projects are worthy of public investment, focus on improving the transportation network in metropolitan areas, and promote the concept of livable communities in which people can live and work without having to make long daily commutes.
  

But he reiterated the administration's opposition to raising the gas tax to pay for highway and transit upgrades because it would add to the burden of Americans already trying to cope with loss of income during the recession.
 

“I recognize that there will be concerns raised about this approach. However, with the reality of our fiscal environment and the critical demand to address our infrastructure investments in a smarter, more focused approach, we should not rush legislation," LaHood said. "We should work together on a full reauthorization that best meets the demands of the country. The first step is making sure that the Highway Trust Fund is solvent. The next step is addressing our transportation priorities over the long term.”

  

Rep. James Oberstar, who is spearheading the draft of a transportation bill in the House as chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, repeated Thursday his opposition to any extensions of the existing SAFETEA-LU spending plan at 2008 levels.
  

Oberstar said in a document outlining his vision for the transportation bill that extensions cause more harm than good and that Congress has never reauthorized highway and transit programs on time. Congress extended a prior transportation-spending plan 12 times before enacting the SAFETEA-LU legislation in 2005.
  

Without a trust fund rescue the federal government faces the prospect of rationing reimbursements to states for highway work. The uncertainty surrounding timely receipt of federal payments has led transportation officials at the state level to slow down construction awards for long-term projects.
  

"In this time of severe economic recession, the effects of any slowed investment could offset much of the benefits of the increased transportation investment provided under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act," Oberstar and three other committee leaders said in their transportation blueprint.
  

"It is imperative for Congress to act on the Surface Transportation Authorization Act and establish a sound and sustainable revenue stream to finance the future of surface transportation," said Oberstar, Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Wash., and the two ranking Republicans, John Mica and John Duncan Jr.
  

The T&I leadership said a short-term fix without finding additional sources of revenue would lead to a $90 billion underinvestment in highway, safety and transit programs over the next six-year funding cycle and jeopardize 3 million jobs.
  

On Tuesday, the Obama administration said the Environmental Protection Agency had joined an earlier partnership between the DOT and Department of Housing and Urban Development to coordinate federal transportation, environmental protection and affordable housing policies to support sustainable communities.
  

The joint guidelines for livable communities include development of more transportation options to reduce transportation costs, reduce emissions and improve public health.

 

(Source: American Shipper)