House Committee Approves Six Year Transportation Reauthorization

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Highways and Transit on Wednesday reported out the Surface Transportation Authorization Act of 2009 a six-year reauthorization of the federal highway and transit programs to replace SAFETEA-LU which expires on September 30, 2009. While there were as many as 30 proposed amendments pending, and several were discussed, the Committee's bipartisan leadership supported a strategy to not vote on amendments, making the bill available for further discussion with the intent of having the full T&I Committee mark up the bill in July. The legislation calls for investment of nearly $450 billion, $337.4 billion for federal highways (a $110 billion increase) and $99.8 billion to transit (a $47.3 billion increase). This 77-23 percent split between highway and transit funding alters the traditional 80-20 proportions. The measure would also provide $50 billion for high-speed passenger rail initiatives to be funded outside the Highway Trust Fund. Details on funding levels for various programs and how the funds are to be distributed are not included in the proposal. Also not included in the legislation is how to provide the needed revenue. Jurisdiction for addressing the revenue side of the equation falls with the House Ways and Means Committee which will be holding a series of hearings over the next several weeks. The legislation also consolidates and eliminates a number of existing programs and creates several new initiatives.