Infrastructure Alert - June 28, 2012

Recently, the members of the Congressional Transportation Conference Committee agreed on a bicameral long term transportation reauthorization bill. House GOP leaders now have until Saturday at midnight to approve the bill prior to the expiration of the current financing measure. The two year bill, which would provide $8.4 billion in funding each year, is similar in structure to a bipartisan bill passed by the Senate earlier this year. Industry leaders have been particularly vocal in encouraging the passage of a multi-year bill as another short-term extension would leave many projects around the country in jeopardy. Additionally, the transportation legislation will include a one-year freeze for government subsidized student loan rates. Off the hill, the TSA allows an additional airport to hire private screeners and states continue to look for alternative solutions to meet infrastructure needs in a difficult economic climate.

On the Hill

Early this morning the conference committee released a new long term surface transportation bill. The bill (H.R. 4348) represents the first agreement on long-term transportation funding legislation since 2005. Transportation Committee Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) said that this "tentative agreement establishes federal highway, transit and highway safety policy and keeps programs at current funding levels through the end of fiscal year 2014. Unlike the last transportation bill, which contained over 6,300 earmarks, this bill doesn't include any earmarks. This bill also does not increase taxes." Funding has been extended nine times over an almost four-year period since the expiration of the last federal highway bill. The agreement came together when Republicans agreed to drop controversial provisions from the legislation, such as approval for the Keystone XL pipeline and the blocking of government regulation of coal ash. In return, Democrats gave up on $1.4 billion for conservation and agreed to allow states more leeway in how they use money that was once mandated for landscaping, bike improvements and pedestrian walkways. Capping off a particularly productive week for Congress, Senator Kyl (R-Ariz.) has said legislators agreed to put a one-year freeze on government subsidized student loan rates. It is believed the transportation and student loan bills may combined and presented and voted on as a package. If an agreement was not reached, federal Stafford student loans would have doubled on July 1. Elsewhere, the...