Boxer to Unveil Long-Term Transportation Bill
The top transportation authorizer in the Senate said she would unveil a long-term transportation bill May 8, responding to concerns raised by industry and government officials over a dwindling federal highway account that supports infrastructure projects.
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), chairwoman of the Environment and Public Works Committee, said May 7 she will introduce a multiyear bill that would reauthorize the programs in the 2012 highway law MAP-21, which expires in September. She said the bill would propose funding structures to boost the Highway Trust Fund, an account the Department of Transportation estimates will be insolvent by August.
Speaking at a Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, Boxer called her bill “fiscally conservative” and urged colleagues to “move quickly because we just don’t have a lot of time.”
Boxer has said she plans to mark up a long-term measure later this month that shores up the trust fund’s spending. She and her House counterpart, Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.), have said they are considering excise taxes on vehicle tires to supplement the fund.
Since MAP-21’s enactment, lawmakers and key industry stakeholders have argued that its two-year reauthorizing window makes it difficult for state and local governments to carry out long-term projects. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx was at the hearing, and he warned that financial uncertainty at the federal level has led officials at various states to delay or halt large-scale construction projects.
“Without action, many states, tribal and local comments may be forced to slow or stop work on critical transportation projects,” Foxx said.
While lawmakers scramble to keep the trust fund solvent through reauthorizing legislation, Foxx touted the Obama administration’s “Grow America Act” legislative proposal that would reform corporate tax structures to generate about $150 billion in revenue for the trust fund.
The tax overhaul “will prevent the trust fund shortfall for four years and increase investments to meet national economic goals,” Foxx added.
