Senate Democrats Release New Infrastructure Plan
March 07, 2018
This week, the Senate Democratic Caucus unveiled their own new jobs and infrastructure plan in response to President Trump’s Infrastructure Principles released in early February. Under the Senate Democrats jobs and infrastructure plan, there would be a $1 trillion federal investment to modernize our deteriorating infrastructure. ASCE President Kristina Swallow released a statement, highlighting that......
Analysis of Federal Bridge Data Confirms ASCE Report Card Bridge Grade
February 02, 2018
The American Road and Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) released its Bridge Report based on the data in the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) 2017 National Bridge Inventory database. ARTBA’s Bridge Report confirms the “C+” grade given in ASCE’s 2017 Infrastructure Report Card. Both reports illustrate that while the overall number of bridges deemed structurally deficient......
December 29, 2017
Between the release of the 2017 Infrastructure Report Card, the implementation of a gas tax in states across the country, and waiting for President Trump’s highly-anticipated infrastructure plan, 2017 has been a full year for ASCE. Take a look at our 5 most read blog posts from 2017: 1. Legislation to Create National Infrastructure Bank Reintroduced......
Congressman Larson Introduces the “America Wins Act”
November 14, 2017
Earlier this month, Congressman John Larson (D-CT) introduced H.R.4209, the America Wins Act – a bill which would invest $1 trillion, through taxing harmful pollution, in our infrastructure over a decade. Under this legislation, $400 billion will be invested in existing federal highway programs and eliminate the $138 billion Highway Trust Fund (HTF) shortfall; $100......
10 Years After the I-35 Bridge Collapse: What’s Changed With the Nation’s Bridges?
August 01, 2017
It’s been 10 years since the I-35 bridge going west over the Mississippi River in downtown Minneapolis collapsed, killing 13 people and injuring 145 more. The eight-lane bridge was Minnesota’s third busiest, carrying 140,000 people a day. Its failure opened many people’s eyes to the danger of taking our infrastructure for granted and led leaders......
Senate Appropriations Committee Approves Transportation Spending Bill
July 28, 2017
The Senate Committee on Appropriations passed a bill yesterday to fund the Departments of Transportation and Housing and Urban Development for fiscal year 2018 (which according to the federal calendar begins October 1). The bill funds the Department of Transportation (DOT) at $79.6 billion for FY18 (a $1.5 billion increase from FY17). That total is $1.1......
FAA Reauthorization Bills Released
June 23, 2017
With just over three months to go before the Federal Aviation Administration’s authorization expires, and a “D” grade for aviation in the 2017 Infrastructure Report Card, the House and Senate committees released their bills yesterday to reauthorize the agency. The House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee’s bill, H.R. 2997, will be the more controversial of the......
Majority of House Signs Letter Asking to Fix the Highway Trust Fund
June 13, 2017
Yesterday 253 congressmen sent a letter to the leadership of the House Ways & Means Committee asking that a long-term fix for Highway Trust Fund be included in their tax reform efforts. “As the Committee on Ways and Means continues to work toward a much-needed update of the U.S. tax code, you have an opportunity......
Infrastructure Week: Time to Build
May 15, 2017
The fifth annual Infrastructure Week is underway. More than 100 events are being held around the country this week, with the goal of elevating infrastructure as a critical issue impacting all Americans. Things kicked off Monday morning with an event at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, featuring Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, Los Angeles Mayor Eric......
A Chance to Fix the Highway Trust Fund
May 01, 2017
President Donald Trump gave the idea of raising the federal gas tax a boost today, saying in an interview with Bloomberg News that raising the tax to fund infrastructure is “something that I would certainly consider.” So far this Congress, Rep. Earl Blumenauer (OR-3) has introduced legislation to raise the federal gas tax, while fellow......