Last week, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) issued its ten-year budget outlook and confirmed that the highway and transit accounts of the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) will likely fall short of fulfilling financial obligations before the end of fiscal year 2014. The CBO estimates that to sustain current highway and transit funding, the HTF will need $15 billion each year in additional revenue.
This week, Senator Barbara Boxer chaired a hearing before the Environment and Public Works Committee regarding reauthorization of the nation’s surface transportation program, Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21), and the impacts on jobs and the economy by maintaining federal investments in transportation infrastructure. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Manufacturers, and organized labor provided testimony regarding the importance of continuing robust federal investment in the nation’s transportation infrastructure, including HTF solvency. Senator Boxer announced she intends to have the Committee vote on a new transportation bill by the end of April. In the House, Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA) has previously stated that he hopes to have a bill through the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee by late spring to early summer. MAP-21 is scheduled to expire on September 30, 2014.
For additional information on federal matters, please contact RCRC Senior Legislative Advocate Paul A. Smith at 916.447.4806 or psmith@rcrcnet.org.