BOTH houses of Congress have deliberately been moving toward passage of a three-month patch to keep federal highway and transit aid flowing to US states, while lawmakers seek the right policies and achievable revenue for a long-term transportation deal.
Congress sent President Barack Obama the three-month bill plan on Thursday, July 30, a day before the deadline for the cutoff of funds, when authority for the Department of Transportation to process aid payments to states was set to expire.
The House passed the short-term, $8-billion bill before leaving Washington for Congress’ August recess. Earlier on Thursday, the Senate also made a move, passing a sweeping long-term transportation bill, setting up discussions with the House this fall on what the future course of transportation policy should be and how to pay for programs.
The Senate approved the bill by vote of 91 to 4.
Lawmakers said they were wary to take up yet another short-term transportation funding extension, the 34th extension since 2009. But Republicans and Democrats don’t want to see transportation aid cut off, and are eager to pass an amendment attached to the extension bill that fills a $3.4 billion hole in the Department of Veterans Affairs’ budget. The money gap also threatens to force the closure of hospitals and clinics nationwide.
The legislators hope the three-month patch will be Congress’ last.
The three-month patch puts off House action on a long-term transportation bill, adding one more battle to this fall’s crammed legislation agenda. Twelve annual spending bills face a fast-approaching deadline in September, but are being held up by the national debate over the Confederate flag. Congress must also decide whether to approve or disapprove President Obama’s Iran deal, and whether to pass a contentious defense policy bill facing a veto threat from the White House. Another fight is certain over raising the nation’s borrowing authority.
The $350 billion, long-term Senate bill cleared a procedural hurdle on Wednesday, July 29, by a vote of 65 to 35.
The bill would make major changes to highway, transit, railroad and auto safety programs, but only provides enough funds for the first three years of enactment. It provides $8 billion to shore up the federal Highway Trust Fund through mid-December.
The bill also renews the Export-Import Bank, which makes low-interest loans to help US companies sell their products overseas. The bank’s charter expired on June 30, in the face of opposition from conservatives calling it corporate welfare.
Though the funds are limited, the propoal was enough to win the support of many state and local officials, transportation related industries, and labor unions who have been imploring Congress for years to pass to bill that will provide states the certainty that they can count on federal aid as they plan major construction projects.
“The House needs to make its voice heard and put forth its own priorities for such a significant piece of legislation,” said Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pa.), chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, before the vote was made Thursday.
The bill’s passage is “a win for our country,” said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky). “Many thought we’d never get here, but we have.”
It has been a decade since Congress last passed a long-term transportation bill, although lawmakers in both parties generally support highway and transit aid. The main roadblock has been finding the funds to pay for such programs, in a way that doesn’t increase the federal deficit.
In past decades, highway and transit programs were paid for with gas tax revenues and other transportation taxes and fees. But the federal 18.4 cents-a-gallon gas tax has not been raised since 1993, while the cost of construction has risen.
The gas tax brings in about $35 billion a year for highway programs, but the government is spending about $50 billion. Obama and many lawmakers say even $50 billion is far too little.
Although Congress could raise the gas tax, lawmakers fear a voter backlash. Obama and House Republican leaders want to change corporate tax laws that encourage US companies to park profits overseas, and use the resulting revenue to fully pay for a six-year transportation bill.
But there is no consensus on the details of the corporate tax changes, and Mitch McConnell said he is skeptical they “can be shoehorned into a multiyear highway bill by the end of the year.” (With reports from The Associated Press and Fox News)
