Rep. Oberstar planning markup on full transportation bill after recess
August 11, 2009By Stephen Lee Davis
At least that’s what the American Planning Association Transportation Planning Division is reporting on their blog. According to their story, Chairman Oberstar of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is planning a full committee mark-up of the Surface Transportation Authorization Act of 2009 as soon as Congress comes back from the August recess.
Appearing at an economic recovery news conference Wednesday in Minnesota, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar said he will hold a full committee mark-up of a $500 billion, six-year federal surface transportation authorization the week of Labor Day, when Congress returns from its summer recess. Oberstar, D-MN, told Minnesota Public Radio that he expects to have the bill on the floor by the third week of September.
Though the Chairman has been promised by leadership that his transportation bill will come to the floor by the third week of September according to the story, the same obstacles to quick passage still remain. The Ways and Means Committee is responsible for determining how to pay for a bill that’s nearly twice as expensive as the last 6-year bill, and to date, they’ve indicated little willingness to think long and hard about transportation revenue while engaged in the health care and climate debates.
As Ken Orski points out, “only 15 of the 41 committee members have gone on record in a letter to committee Chairman Charles Rangel (D-NY) supporting prompt action (i.e. in September) on a revenue package for the bill.” Regardless, we’ll be watching the markup closely come September.
h/t to Twitter user and T4 partner @cwsjd99
Chairman Oberstar’s comments on today’s subcommittee markup
June 24, 2009By Stephen Lee Davis
h/t Twitter @JimOberstar
Transportation bill being considered: Join us for a national call-in day today
June 24, 2009By Stephen Lee Davis
| We need you to make one call to Congress and ensure that transportation spending delivers. Click here for details on making a call. |
| Or just call the Congressional Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and tell your Representative to support the National Transportation Objectives Act of 2009. (HR 2724) |
As we post this, Chairman James Oberstar’s transportation bill draft is being “marked up” in a House subcommittee. As that committee works on the bill and news about the bill is fresh in the minds of House members, we are organizing a national call-in day today to make sure that Congress gets our message loud and clear:
No new money without reforming the system.
Can you help out by calling your Representative today? It will make a real difference, and it only takes about one minute. Information on how to call at right or bottom, or click here
The draft bill has a lot of what Transportation for America, our coalition, and our many supporters have been pushing for, but today, it still falls short. As it stands today, it leaves out something crucial: Clear national priorities for what $450 billion in transportation spending will achieve.
Without over-arching goals and targets — like lower energy consumption, reduced emissions, greater affordability, or expanded access to transportation choices for all Americans — there’s no way to be sure billions of dollars in transportation spending will truly deliver clean, safe and smart transportation. We can definitely do better. We can’t keep pouring our precious tax dollars into the same old flawed transportation system that leaves us stuck without options.
Help us get a real plan that delivers. Call your member of Congress today:
- Call the Congressional Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask to speak to your representative’s office.
- Tell the staff member answering the phone where you’re calling from, and that you’d like to urge the representative to support the National Transportation Objectives Act of 2009 (H.R. 2724). You can add:
- You are a constituent and a supporter of the Transportation for America coalition.
- You want to make sure the billions spent on transportation help us cut down on emissions, give us real energy security, and provide us with more affordable options for getting from A to B.
- No new money for transportation without reforming the system and making it accountable and measurable.
- Then let us know you made the call
Chairman releases full transportation bill text
June 22, 2009By Stephen Lee Davis
Chairman Jim Oberstar and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee have released the full 775-page transportation bill text. Download it here. (pdf) Check back here for details over the coming week.
Some details on Chairman Oberstar’s transportation proposal
June 18, 2009By Stephen Lee Davis
| Read T4 America’s official statement on the release of the summary outline by Chairman James Oberstar. |
We’ll have a number of posts today and tomorrow breaking down some of the notable spending levels and reforms proposed in Chairman Oberstar’s outline of the transportation bill. In the meantime, we thought we’d give you a few details that we’ve looked over while scanning the outline of the bill this morning. Note that today’s 11 a.m. press conference — which will included a longer version of the proposal — has been delayed until 2 p.m. due to “House votes.”
According to Oberstar’s summary, the upcoming bill will restructure and transform federal transportation policy away from multiple “prescriptive programs” into a “performance-based framework” “designed to achieve specific national objectives.”
The outline calls for terminating and consolidating more than 75 of the 108 total programs into a few broad large program areas, but it maintains current funding silos between separate modes. Here’s a quick breakdown. (Remember that these numbers are not final, and could be very different when the bill is released next week.)
- Highways: $337.4 billion (75%) of $450 billion
- Transit: $98.8 billion (22.2%) of $450 billion
- Safety Programs: $12.6 billion (2.8%) of $450 billion
Its important to note that the $98.8 billion in proposed transit funds is not necessarily an accurate reflection of how much money public transportation would receive in total. Oberstar’s outline includes $50 billion for a new “Metropolitan Mobility and Access Program,” which will “provide significant funding to help the largest metropolitan regions address congestion,” and a refocused “Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program” (CMAQ). While money for both of these programs are included in the highway allocation, it would be possible under the proposal to spend these funds on public transportation projects to achieve the stated goals of CMAQ and the Metropolitan Mobility programs.
Chairman Oberstar’s outline also calls for $50 billion to develop high-speed rail — in addition to the money in the stimulus package and yearly appropriations bill for this year — an area of transportation that has never received funding in previous transportation legislation.
Oberstar told Congressional Quarterly this morning that he is still planning on releasing full bill text and marking up the bill in his Highways and Transit Subcommittee next week.
Check back later today for more details and analysis.
Transportation bill summary hits the streets
June 18, 2009By Andrew Bielak
| Transportation Bill Outline (Condensed — 10 pages) (.PDF) |
| Transportation Bill Outline (Full Version — 86 pages) (.PDF) |
| Recommended Program Consolidations (.PDF) |
UPDATED: The 11 a.m. press conference has been moved to 2 p.m., due to “House votes” according to Rep. Oberstar’s Twitter feed. In addition to posting the short 10-page document, we’ve also now included the full 86-page outline of the proposal.
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A 10-page summary of the transportation bill draft is out this morning from the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. The bill outline, entitled the “Surface Transportation Authorization Act of 2009,” is available at right, alongside a second document that describes the myriad programs which being recommended for consolidation under the new bill.
Rep. James Oberstar, chairman of the T & I Committee, is holding a press conference in about one hour at 11:00 a.m. in which a more detailed, 100-page outline of the bill will be released. (Check back here for a link or download.) No word yet on how LaHood’s recommendation that the current bill be extended for 18 months will affect the legislation coming out of the House.
As we speak, our policy experts are diving into the bill to get all the good details and analysis — so stay tuned for more information throughout the day.
Rep. Oberstar releasing outline of transportation bill Wednesday
June 15, 2009By Stephen Lee Davis
This just in. From a press advisory we received:
T&I Chairman to Release Blueprint for New Transportation Authorization Bill 6/17
WASHINGTON — House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman James L. Oberstar (Minn.) will release a white paper next week (6/17) to outline plans for the new surface transportation authorization bill.
The news conference is scheduled for Wednesday, June 22, at 11:00 a.m. The event will be held in Room 2167 of the Rayburn House Office Building. The news conference also will be webcast live on the Committee’s website, http://transportation.house.gov.
The authorization bill is currently being drafted and will replace the current authorization, SAFETEA-LU, which is due to expire on September 30. Oberstar has promised that the new authorization will transform the way the federal government invests highway, safety, and transit funds.
WHO: House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James L. Oberstar (Minn.)
WHAT: News Conference to release blueprint for new surface transportation authorization bill
WHEN: Wednesday, June 17, 2009, 11:00 a.m.
WHERE: Room 2167, Rayburn House Office Building, Independence Ave. at South Capitol St. S.W., Washington, D.C.
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