Reauthorization Update

Updates by Jason Pavluchuk 
 

 

Action on transportation reauthorization is fast and furious, constantly evolving - so with that - we caution that this update is as of the morning of July 23rd. It is likely that some changes will have occurred, check the ACT twitter feed for the most up to date information.

 

House

The House has passed a short-term extension provides roughly $8 billion of funding for the Highway Trust Fund. The House bill would extend MAP-21 through December 18th, 2015. The House at this time does not seem willing or able to pass a longer extension. It's their hope that a long-term solution can be identified over the next several months

 

Senate

The Senate is preparing to debate a transportation bill. Over the weekend it was widely reported that a deal had been struck on a long-term bill. That report was in a sense, premature. Majority Leader McConnell and Senator Boxer reached an agreement 'in principle' on a 6-yr bill with 3-yrs of funding. Momentum began to build and as of Monday, it seemed very possible that the Senate would pass a bill. As late as Wednesday evening, there was a lack of detail. Additionally, the 'pay-fors' were constantly changing. All 1,000 pages of the legislation were unveiled at 2:45 on Tuesday and Senators were being asked to vote to begin debate on the bill. That vote failed. The Democrats unanimously opposed stating that they needed time to review the legislation.  

 

So what's next. The fate of the bill rests with Democrats in the Senate. There are both policy and political factors that will determine what occurs over the next several days. It should also be noted that there are many things that could derail movement - regardless whether the Dems agree to come along. This includes, but is not limited to, presidential election politics. No less than four Republicans running for president want to use this stage to promote their agendas and promise controversial amendments. House leaders are on record publically and privately saying they want a 5-month patch to give them time to draft their own bill.

 

We will provide an update on the status next week at the Keynote Luncheon on July 27th of the ACT 2015 International Conference.

 

Senate Commerce Title Exempts Vanpools From Regulation

One item of note that we would like to pass along is that the Senate Commerce Committee, which handles safety and other items, included in their title a provision that would exempt vanpools from a rule related to 9-15 passenger vehicles. This is of vital importance to ACT and its membership. There are certainly other provisions in the legislation that benefit ACT and ACT members, but this provision in particular is something that ACT has sought after for more than a decade.

 

Action Taken on Transit Benefit Parity

The Senate Finance Committee approved a tax-extenders package on Tuesday July 21st that includes an extension of transit benefit parity for 2015 and 2016. Additionally, it would expand eligibility to also include Bikeshare. Both the House and the Senate have indicated they want to avoid a last minute tax extenders fight and are hoping to move the package this fall. It is possible that the package will get attached to a Highway Trust Fund patch, but given the many issues with that process, it is not very likely that will be the case.
 

Mayor Toni Harp can relate: She commuted to and from Hartford for more than 20 years. Because of this experience when she was a state senator, she said she has some "very strong opinions about the need for practicality and efficiency in transportation."

 

Harp spoke Monday about the need for a refined, more responsive city-wide transportation network. The city is attempting to limit the number of commuters who travel alone by car, as these commuters add to pollution and the congestion and lack of available parking downtown. Read the full article at the New Haven Register. 

 

San Francisco Proposing New Housing Development Fee to Expand Transit

 

Mayor Ed Lee's administration is looking to tap into the city's housing boom to help bankroll $1.2 billion in transit improvements over the next 30 years.

 

A proposed transportation sustainability fee announced Tuesday would apply to new market rate condominium and apartment projects and would add $14 million to the $24 million a year already collected from other types of developments.

 

The money would be spent on expanding the Muni fleet with new buses and railcars, improving reliability on the busiest routes, retrofitting existing trains, investing in the electrification of Caltrain, and making streets safer for bicyclists and pedestrians. Read the full article at the San Francisco Gate.  

 

Eight State DOT Projects Win Awards for Cost-Savings, Innovation and Community-Focus

 

Eight state department of transportation projects in California, Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Texas, and Utah are winners in this year's second regional contest in the America's Transportation Awards competition. The announcement today was made at the 2015 Western Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials annual meeting. The projects won in each of the competition's three categories: Best Use of Innovation, Under Budget, and Quality of Life/Community Development.

 

"These projects are a small sampling of the many ways in which state DOTs are improving peoples' quality of life and providing for a vibrant economy," said John Cox, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials President and Director of the Wyoming Department of Transportation.

 

The America's Transportation Awards - co-sponsored by AASHTO, AAA and the US Chamber of Commerce - annually recognizes the best of America's transportation projects in four regional competitions. The 10 regional winners with the highest overall scores will compete for the National Grand Prize, the People's Choice Award and $10,000 prizes to be given by the winners to a transportation-related charity or scholarship program. The top two national winners will be announced in September at the AASHTO Annual Meeting in Chicago, Illinois. Learn more about the projects and the competition at: AmericasTransportationAwards.org.

 
 

Move Together: Shared Mobility Summit & NABSA Annual Meeting

 

Move Together, the 2015 Shared Mobility Summit and NABSA Annual Meeting in Chicago, Il. on September 28-30, will bring together transportation and policy leaders from across the country to share new developments in shared mobility, foster collaboration between the public and private sectors, and explore new solutions related to equity, integration with transit, use of public space, fare media integration, economic development and more.

 

Statutes One Step Behind as Drivers Wear Distracting Devices

 

Every year new consumer technologies vie for our attention, forcing policymakers to struggle to write and rewrite statutes making sure we don't become distracted at the most crucial times.

 

In the wake of the smartphone revolution, in the last decade states have moved to restrict the use of cellphones while driving. According to the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), 14 states have banned the use of cellphones while driving while a further 24 ban their usage among novice drivers.

Reading the full article at Brookings Institute.

 

Gas Tax is Over

 

As the House and Senate squabble over a way to pay for road projects and avoid the looming "highway cliff" this week, America's transportation experts think it's high time for Washington to take up a much bigger challenge: Rebuilding our national transportation strategy from the ground up, and finding a smart new source of money to pay for it.

 

With transportation-funding crises now a regular event on the Washington calendar, and Congress seemingly unable to come up with a long-term solution, The Agenda turned to a carefully selected list of more nearly three dozen leaders and experts across the public and private spheres to ask whether there was a better way for the nation to handle its crucial roads, rail, and other infrastructure.

 

Nearly 90 percent said the federal government should continue to play a significant role in funding highway construction, as it does now. Read the full article at Politico.

 

Florida DOT Piecing Together Hiking and Biking Trails for the Coast to Coast Connector

 

There's more than one way to put together a jigsaw puzzle when state trails are the pieces.Last year, Gov. Rick Scott approved funding to finally begin stitching together the Coast to Coast Connector, Florida's cross-state hiking and biking trail, from a patchwork of existing paths.

 

When all the connections are finished, expected by 2020, the connector will span roughly 275 miles from St. Petersburg to Merritt Island. Trailgoers will then have an uninterrupted shot from Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic Ocean, a trip that could take as little as four or five days for die-hard bicyclists. Read the full article at Naples Daily News.

 

 

NJ's Corporate Leaders Worry about State's Transportation Network  

 

Annual survey of business professionals shows they have a lot more on their minds than taxes -- starting with roads, bridges, and mass transit.

 

It's no surprise that New Jersey's corporate leaders cited taxes as their top concern, since they do so every year when canvassed by the state Chamber of Commerce survey. What's more interesting is that respondents to this year's economic outlook survey also pointed to New Jersey's deteriorating roads, bridges, and mass-transit infrastructure.

 

In fact, among the 100 executives who were polled by the chamber, concern about transportation infrastructure came up more than worries about the economy, government-red tape, and the minimum wage.

Read the full article at New Jersey Spotlight.