In Hill event, local leaders make case for federal support for transportation needs
Before a packed room on Capitol Hill, local leaders from three very different communities shared one very specific message with a handful of Congressmen and at least four dozen staffers: If Congress doesn’t act to shore up the nation’s transportation fund before it goes insolvent later this year, their cities and communities would bear the brunt of the pain.
Our series on local successes continues: Normal, Illinois
This inspiring story from Normal, Illinois is one that we’ve been following here for quite some time. Normal’s story is the third in our series of these stories that illustrate how local communities across the country are casting a vision for transportation investments and often putting their own skin in the game first with local funding while hoping for a strong federal partner to make those plans a reality. And that’s just what Normal found through the federal TIGER program.
Shining a spotlight on the nation’s strapped transportation fund this Wednesday
It’s not a new story by now: states and local governments stand to lose nearly all access to federal transportation support next year if Congress doesn’t act to shore up the nation’s transportation fund sometime before the end of the summer. So far, we’ve mostly talked about this as a national story, but make no mistake: insolvency would have huge impacts on local communities. To explore the issue in that light, we’re supporting a bipartisan briefing pulled together by two key House members
U.S. DOT Acting Assistant Secretary Beth Osborne joins Transportation for America
Transportation for America is pleased to announce the hiring of Beth Osborne, a key leader in federal policy at the U.S. Department of Transportation, where she served in the office of the Secretary since 2009 as Deputy Assistant Secretary and then Acting Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy.
Denver conference will showcase transportation success – but will others be allowed to emulate it?
Almost 1,000 people heading to Denver, Colorado this week for the annual New Partners for Smart Growth conference will get to see up close what we recently called “a bold bet on an ambitious and comprehensive plan to expand their transportation network a decade ago” in our profile of Denver’s transportation success.
Statement congratulating Senator Baucus on his appointment as the U.S. Ambassador to China
The U.S. Senate Thursday confirmed Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) as U.S. ambassador to China, with Sen. Ron Wyden poised to become the next chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. In response to these developments, Transportation for America Director James Corless issued this statement:
CBO: Highway Trust Fund hole even deeper than expected
New revenue projections for the Highway Trust Fund released this week from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) show that, not only is the nation’s transportation fund going in the red sooner than expected, but the gap to maintain promised funding levels has increased by about $5 billion.
Our op-ed in The Hill today: Helping the feds help the locals to help the economy
Excerpt from op-ed: “If we are going to raise the necessary revenue — and we argue emphatically that we should — we have to be able to articulate a clear and compelling case that the investment will lead to improved long-term economic prosperity. At the same time we need to direct more of the funding and latitude to local communities, rewarding the most innovative projects at the level where voters can best be assured of accountability.”
SOTU followup: Does transportation offer a glimmer of bipartisan hope?
As we noted in our statement after the State of the Union address Tuesday night, it was good to hear the President again cite the need to steer new revenue toward “rebuilding our roads, upgrading our ports, unclogging our commutes”. He didn’t say much beyond that, of course, but given other developments in the background, we have reason to be somewhat encouraged.
Cities are “laboratories of innovation.” Should they have more control of transportation funding?
That was the implied assertion made by Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed in a widely-circulated op-ed last week on Huffington Post. But is it accurate to paint today’s debate over this point as a black-and-white “age-old tug of war between state transportation officials and their city-level counterparts” about doling out money, as National Journal did in a question to their panel of transportation experts? Or is the problem more that we’re entering a new age of transportation needs armed with the last era’s transportation policies?
Statement in response to President Obama’s call for transportation investment in the State of the Union address
Responding to President Obama’s call to steer new revenue toward “rebuilding our roads, upgrading our ports, unclogging our commutes”, Transportation for America Director James Corless issued this statement.
Our Can-Do Places series continues: Denver
Faced with potential employers suggesting that the lack of transit connections were preventing Denver from realizing their economic development goals, the region’s leaders banded together and made a bold bet on an ambitious and comprehensive plan to expand their transportation network a decade ago.
Graphic: Comparing the 2014 bipartisan budget to 2013
Congress passed the first full budget in three years last night after the Senate vote that will provide stable or increased funding for key programs we’ve been fighting for over the last few years. Take a look at this graphic which shows the good news for transportation in this 2014 budget compared to FY2013 figures post-sequestration.
Transportation for America congratulates Congress on adopting a 2014 budget with solid funding for transportation
Responding to House and Senate adoption of a comprehensive 2014 federal budget, Transportation for America Director James Corless issued this statement:
Reaction to transportation investment levels in the compromise federal budget bill for fiscal 2014
Proposal increases funding support for locally driven solutions Responding to release of the omnibus bill covering all federal discretionary spending for FY2014 – drafted in accordance with December’s House-Senate budget agreement — Transportation for America Director James Corless issued this statement: “We are very pleased to see that the omnibus bill gave appropriate weight to preserving […]
Cuts restored, progress possible in critical budget deal
Positive news from Congress today! Yes, you heard right. Just months after budget sequestration and a government shutdown put transportation funding at risk, House leaders have agreed to a budget deal that would provide stable or increased funding for key programs that you’ve helped us defend over the last few years.
In 2013, 20-plus states took up transportation funding: Here’s the final tally
With a large number of state legislatures convening as the new year gets underway, it’s worth a look back at an important trend from 2013: States stepping forward to raise additional money for transportation. With federal funding remaining flat in 2012′s transportation bill (MAP-21) and after years of deferred action during the long recession, a large number of states, metro areas and local communities moved to supplement federal dollars with new revenues of their own.
T4 brings mayors to Washington to tell Secretary Foxx about the importance of passenger rail
T4America brought together a group of mayors to visit with U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx — a former mayor himself — and deliver a message about the importance of passenger rail to the economies of those communities they represent.
Budget deal avoids automatic cuts; focus shifts to appropriations committees
Barring a successful rebellion within one party or the other, it looks like Congress may have the first bipartisan budget agreement since 2010. That is good news for the economy, and it is especially welcome where transportation infrastructure is concerned.
Business, civic and elected leaders from across the country call on Congress to boost and refocus transportation funding
Kicking off a new push to rejuvenate the nation’s investment in transportation, business and civic leaders from cities, towns and suburbs across the country came together Tuesday to urge Congress to help them innovate and build the infrastructure needed for today’s economy.
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