Highway Trust Fund Shortfall Reported

In a letter to the full House of Representatives this week, Transportation & Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar (D-Minn.) and Highways & Transit Subcommittee Chairman Peter DeFazio (D-OR) warned that the Highway Trust Fund is facing a severe revenue shortfall and Congress needs to act quickly to enact new transportation authorization legislation to avoid a dramatic downturn in highway construction. The letter pointed out that, "Without taking steps to avoid this situation, the Highway Trust Fund will only support a highway investment level of approximately $20.5 billion in FY 2010, one-half of the amount that we are investing this year.  The Federal transit program would also face a significant cut in FY 2010."  The letter further warned that, "These cuts would unquestionably cause construction to halt on many critical projects throughout the nation and would negate the simulative effect of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009." Included with the letter was a state by state chart showing the dramatic cuts that will occur if this situation is not fixed. The letter was intended as a wake-up call pointing out that the current authorization bill, SAFETEA-LU, expires on September 30, 2009 and that Congress needs to ensure that there will be no disruption in highway and transit program funding. Chairman Oberstar has stated on numerous occasions his intent of having new authorization legislation enacted before the expiation deadline arrives. This letter once again makes that point saying that states need a reliable funding source to avoid the pull back in investments in highway construction projects that occurred in the last reauthorization when 12 extensions were necessary to keep the program running while a new bill was negotiated.