#FixTheTrustFund: Senate Dodging Potholes
July 27, 2015
Two weeks ago, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that would fund federal transportation projects through mid-December to avoid the July 31 legislative deadline. While this would divert a summer construction catastrophe, delaying Congressional agreement on a multi-year path forward is not an ideal option because short-term extensions make it difficult to plan......
July 24, 2015
With one week left until the Highway Trust Fund expires, the Senate is kicking it into high gear to agree on a long-term surface transportation bill, even when it means working weekends. ASCE supports swift passage of the bill the Senate is currently considering, which includes, at its core, ASCE’s favored legislation the DRIVE......
Fix the Trust Fund: Now it’s the Senate’s Turn
July 20, 2015
Last Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to extend highway and transit programs until December 18, 2015 on a 312-119 vote. The House bill granted a $8.1 billion boost the Highway trust Fund (HTF) to keep it solvent past the looming July 31 deadline. This extension will fund surface transportation projects through......
Time ticking away for Highway Trust Fund fix, but there is still hope
July 17, 2015
Despite another action-packed week on the Hill, a long-term, sustainable funding solution for our nation’s transportation network still is not final. While the House voted for a short-term extension until December, there’s still hope that the Senate’s multi-year bill, the DRIVE Act, will prevail before the July 31 deadline. The House passed an $8.1 billion......
Five (More) Myths About the Highway Trust Fund
July 15, 2015
1. Devolving the federal program to the states is a viable option Devolution is the idea of eliminating the federal government’s ability to collect the current 18.4 cents per gallon in federal gasoline taxes (absent a few cents to remain dedicated toward maintaining the Interstate Highway System) and transferring all authority over these programs to......
Congressional Focus Remains on Highway & Transit Bill
July 13, 2015
This week both the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate will gear-up over the future of federal highway and transit funding and policy. The House is expected to approve a six-month extension of current policy, which would cost approximately $9 billion. The Senate is expected to take-up highway legislation later this week, but it......
July 10, 2015
The hour glass is running thinner on the federal surface transportation program. Congress has only three weeks left to pass a robust, multiyear surface transportation bill before the self-imposed deadline. This week ASCE joined with the American Road and Transportation Builders Association in sponsoring an ad directed at Congress and the President, asking that they......
#FIXTHETRUSTFUND This Week: Time for Congress’ Next Move
July 06, 2015
Congress returns to D.C. this week, and we’re watching the Senate (where the most promising legislation was recently passed through the EPW Committee) to see if the Senate Commerce Committee or the Senate Banking Committee will start to mark-up their portions of the highway and transit bill. However to truly move forward, Senate leadership and the......
Holiday Travel Will Further Stress Nation’s Ailing Highways
July 02, 2015
With Independence Day around the corner, now is a good time to reflect upon the freedoms we have enjoyed for the past 239 years. To this day, our national interstate highway system represents the freedom of mobility that we enjoy as Americans. This holiday weekend, AAA is predicting that nearly 42 million Americans will travel......
Momentum to DRIVE up infrastructure funding
June 26, 2015
With a new surface transportation re-authorization bill on the table, the process to pass a long-term bill before Congress’ July 31 deadline is materializing. This week the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee passed a six-year, $278 billion surface transportation reauthorization bill called the Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy (DRIVE) Act.......