Congress is back in session, but it was not a member of the legislative branch who introduced legislation to fund transportation projects. Instead, the U.S. DOT and President Obama followed up on a promise from earlier this year to propose a $302 billion transportation budget, titled GROW AMERICA (which stands for Generating Renewal, Opportunity, and Work with Accelerated Mobility, Efficiency, and Rebuilding of Infrastructure and Communities throughout America). Don’t worry, you won’t be tested on the anagram at the end of this post.
However, despite a step toward a possible funding option for the Highway Trust Fund, to guarantee it doesn’t become insolvent during the height of summer road construction, Time suspects you didn’t even hear about it. There was some coverage, but it was not splashed across the top of news websites, nor did it get a breaking news app push notification or email (at least not from any I use. If yours did let me know and I will gladly convert).
Most notable to the news media was the administration’s proposed shift in current law regarding tolls on interstate freeways. It is an alternative to raising the gas tax that will offer additional revenue, though the law makes it an option for states, rather than a federal mandate.
So could the GROW Act be the answer to preventing Washington’s next cliff? Or will Congress put a pothole in its path to better transportation?
Several states, including Iowa and Utah, continue to fear the Highway Trust Fund’s insolvency. And a Nevada paper urged that the country needs a plan.
Both Rep. Dina Titus and Rep. Bill Shuster wrote in Roll Call this week about the importance of maintaining our infrastructure. It is time to transform these words into actions to #FixtheTrustFund.