There has been a flurry of activity and controversy on the reauthorization of the surface transportation bill.
On the morning of Feb. 3, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, after first acting on nearly 90 amendments, approved H.R. 7. Normally the committee approaches legislation on a bipartisan basis, but the vote on the American Energy and Transportation Act was very partisan with no Democrats supporting the bill.
The $260 billion five-year bill funds both the highway and transit program at current funding levels. It consolidates or eliminates approximately 70 programs, including several that are important to counties such as the off-system bridge program, the high-risk rural road safety program and the enhancements program. NACo supported several key amendments, including restoring transportation enhancement funding, which lost by two votes, and a second amendment striking a section of the bill that would have allowed larger trucks on the Interstate system.
In a section that NACo generally supports, the bill takes a strong position on speeding up the delivery of projects that receive federal funds. Most Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) provisions are maintained and no current MPO will lose its status, but the population threshold for any new region becoming an MPO is increased from 50,000 to 100,000. There are no earmarks or projects in the measure.
In another partisan action, the House Ways and Means Committee approved the revenue section of the surface transportation bill, which provides funding for the legislation. This legislation included a very controversial section which removes the $2.86 per gallon in fuel tax that presently goes to mass transit. Transit has been receiving this funding since 1982. It appears the committee would replace these funds with a one-time $40 billion general fund transfer into the Alternative Transportation Account, that would be subject to the annual appropriations process. It is not entirely clear how the $40 billion will be raised.
NACo signed several letters opposing this change in law. The bill also includes a section on onshore and offshore oil and gas production measures, the revenue from which would go into the Highway Trust Fund. This provision is supposed to help finance the legislation, but it also is unlikely to engender much bipartisanship.
Finally, on the Senate side, the Banking Committee by a unanimous vote approved a two-year bill that includes the transit section of the surface transportation bill. The bill maintains current transit funding levels of $10.6 billion annually. At some point, this measure will be merged with the highway section of the bill, known as MAP-21, which has been approved by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.
MAP-21, like its House counterpart, consolidates and eliminates many programs, including the off-system bridge program and the transportation enhancement program. MPOs between 50,000–200,000 would face an uncertain future and are no longer guaranteed a role in the planning process. There are also no earmarks included.
Since both the Senate and House bills do away with a number of programs of importance to counties, in particular the off-system bridge program, NACo urges county officials to contact their senators and representatives and urge that specific funding for the off-system bridge program be restored.
It is possible that both the full House and Senate will consider their respective surface transportation bills within the next several weeks. They would be aiming to have the legislation wrapped up by March 30, when the current eighth extension for program expires.