Congress is expected to consider a new $302 billion transportation bill that was submitted by US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx.
The mammoth, four-year bill was dubbed GROW AMERICA, an acronym for “Generating Renewal, Opportunity and Work with Accelerated Mobility, Efficiency, and Rebuilding of Infrastructure and Communities throughout America.”
It is being submitted ahead of the expiration of the current transportation bill, MAP-21, which is set to expire at the end of September. If the current bill expires before a new bill is passed, it could put at risk the resources of the Highway Trust Fund, which is the leading source of federal transportation funding.
Last month, former Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood was skeptical that Congress would be able to pass the transportation bill, given the political polarity in the House and Senate right now.
Inaction Could Be Catastrophic
But Foxx said Congress needed to take action quickly, otherwise the nation’s transportation infrastructure could be at risk.
“Failing to act before the Highway Trust Fund runs out is unacceptable and unaffordable,” Foxx said. “This proposal offers the kind of job creation and certainty that the American people want and deserve. I have been pleased to see that members of both parties are already working together to solve these challenges, and I look forward to continuing our discussion and to supporting and building on the good work that’s already been done.”
$87 Billion Higher than Current Bill
The Obama administration’s bill calls for part of its funding to come from a one-time $150 billion transition revenue from pro-growth business tax reform, a provision that many pro-business members of Congress may have trouble embracing.
Other components of the bill — which has been dubbed by the White House as the “Vision for the 21st Century Infrastructure” Act — include:
- Spending an additional $87 billion to address the nation’s backlog of crumbling bridges, highways and transit systems
- Creating millions of new jobs to improve the nation’s economy and poise the US to be more competitive globally
- Increasing safety requirements for many transportation industries, including raising the civil penalties that the National Transportation Safety Board can collect from automakers that fail to react quickly to vehicle recalls
- Streamlining the project approval and permit process while delivering better outcomes for communities and the environment
- Reinforcing efficient and reliable freight networks to support trade and economic growh
- Creating incentive to better align planning an investment decisions to comprehensively address regional economic needs while strengthening local decision making
The bill also includes $10 billion for a dedicated freight funding program over four years to pay for a multimodal freight grant program for railways, highways and ports.
Former Secretary Skeptical of Passage
LaHood, Foxx’s predecessor who now a private consultant and no longer officially speaking for the Obama administration, said last month that the White House’s chances of getting its transportation bill passed by the current Congress in a mid-term election year was slim to none.
“The current Congress is not in a mood to pass a multi-year transportation bill and is certainly not in a mood to try and figure out how to fund infrastructure in America,” LaHood said.