Contact Your Senators & Ask Them to Support the FAST Act
This afternoon by a vote of 359-65 passed the conference report to HR. 22, the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, which is the first long-term transportation bill in more than a decade. The Senate is now expected to take up the FAST Act and, if they are successful in clearing potential procedural votes, they will vote on final passage later this evening. Please visit Hardhats for Highways and urge them to support the FAST Act when it comes to the Senate floor for a vote. Please also take a moment to thank your Representative for their support of the bill. If the Senate is able to pass the bill this evening, it appears the president will sign it prior to the expiration of the current extension tomorrow.
AGC and our coalition partners in the Transportation Construction Coalition wrote letters of support for the FAST Act, which provides funding authorization for five years for federal highway and transit programs at increased funding levels. The Act does not increase the gas tax or create any new revenue source for the Highway Trust Fund but instead continues the trend of general fund transfers off set with non-transportation revenue, allowing the Act to be fully funded through the five year period. The Act calls for adjustments in authorized funding levels should Highway Trust Fund revenue increase or decrease beyond the projected annual income amounts.
The year-by-year funding levels are below.
|
2015 (Current) |
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
2020 |
|
|
Highways |
$37.798 B |
$39.727 B |
$40.771 B |
$41.424 B |
$42.359 B |
$43.373 B |
|
TIFIA |
$ 1.00 B |
$275 M |
$275 M |
$285 M |
$300 M |
$300 M |
|
NSFHP (grants) |
$800 M |
$850 M |
$900 M |
$950 M |
$1.00 B |
|
|
Transit Formula |
$8.595 B |
$9.347 B |
$9.733 B |
$9.733 B |
$9.939 B |
$10.150 B |
|
Transit Capital Grants |
$2.12 B |
$2.301 B |
$2.301 B |
$2.301 B |
$2.301 B |
$2.301 B |
The Act creates a new National Highway Freight Program funded at $1.26 billion per year distributed to states by formula for highway freight improvement projects. It also converts the Surface Transportation Program (STP) to a block grant program, giving states more flexibility in the use of these funds but increasing the amount going to local governments from 50 percent to 55 percent over the life of the bill.
The Act continues to make improvements in the environmental review and planning process to expedite project delivery, including giving the U.S. Department of Transportation more authority to set schedules and deadlines. The Act also aligns environmental reviews for historic properties. In addition, the bill creates a pilot program that allows up to five states to substitute their own environmental laws and regulations for the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review process if the state’s laws and regulations are at least as stringent as NEPA.
The Act creates a new requirement for states to provide an annual report on all projects over $25 million comparing the estimated cost at the beginning of the project with its final cost and includes an explanation about revisions in scope or other factors impacting project costs or overruns.
The Act expands the current exemption to the hours-of-service rule for drivers of construction vehicles, allowing those operating within a 75-mile radius to restart the weekly driving limit after 24 hours of rest, rather than 34 hours, which is the standard for other drivers. Ready mix concrete delivery drivers are exempted from logging requirements and 30 minute break requirements if they operate within a 100-mile driving radius.
The passage of the FAST Act is a tremendous accomplishment and AGC members should be proud of the work that they have done in educating members of Congress of the importance of passing a long-term bill. However, our job is not done. The bill does not provide a long-term sustainable solution to the structural imbalance that has plagued the Highway Trust Fund since 2008 and we must immediately get to work and find sustainable funding mechanisms for the Highway Trust Fund.
For more information, please contact Sean O’Neill at oneills@agc.org or (202) 547-8892.