Manufacturers Group Presses Rep. Paul Ryan for Long-Term Bill
The Association of Equipment Manufacturers called on Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) this week to advance a long-term transportation bill before funding authority for highway programs expires May 31.
“Congress faces a choice in the coming weeks: commit to fixing our roads or settle for more of the same inaction and half-measures that has ravaged Washington now for years,” AEM President Dennis Slater wrote in an editorial published in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel on April 6. “The Highway Trust Fund runs out of money on May 31, and all indications are that congressional leaders will decide whether to approve another piecemeal proposal after their current recess for the Easter and Passover holidays.”
Slater continued, “This is where Ryan enters the equation. He is in the unique position of being in charge of finding the money we need to make sure we don't face a partial government shutdown of highway projects right at the height of the construction season this summer.”
Both Ryan, chairman of the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee, and his Senate counterpart, Republican Orrin Hatch of Utah, have not indicated how they would keep the trust fund operating after May. With GOP leaders not proposing a long-term plan and voicing opposition for the Obama administration's six-year transportation proposal, there’s a growing consensus among observers that Congress will opt for a short-term transportation fix next month.
Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx told reporters recently the May funding deadline won’t mean highway spending would stop immediately. “There would still be funding available through probably late July, early August," Foxx said.
