This email alert went out today to its members from the Wisconsin Transportation Builders Association (WTBA). Sounds like it's aimed at Tea Partiers in Congress.
Subject: Call Your Republican Congressman Now
03 - January - 2011
Guaranteed Funding for Highways & Transit is Under Attack
WTBA has recently learned, through our national affiliate ARTBA, that
the incoming House Republican majority unveiled its proposed rules for
operating the chamber in 2011 and 2012. Included in this proposed
package is a repeal of the guaranteed funding requirement for annual
highway investment.
According to a press release from the House Rules Committee
Republicans under this change: "Highway funding, with some exceptions,
will now be treated as other general spending and therefore be subject
to any member attempts to reduce the spending."
BACKGROUND
Under a current House rule, members may not offer a bill, joint
resolution, amendment or conference report that reduces spending
levels for highway, highway safety, and public transportation below
the guaranteed funding amounts that are specified in authorization law
(in this case, extensions of SAFETEA-LU). This rule holds regardless
of the source of the revenues that support those spending levels.
In the House Rules package for the 112th Congress, Republicans propose
to change the current rule. The change would eliminate guaranteed
funding for highways. Call your Republican Congressman or
Congresswoman immediately and ask them to stop this change that will
put more people out of work and make American products less
competitive. They are scheduled to approve these rules tomorrow,
Tuesday, January 4th.
THE MESSAGE
The proposed change to Rule XXI (21), Clause 3 is bad policy, bad for
jobs and bad for the economy. This change should not be made in the
Rules Package for the 112th Congress.
1. The change is bad policy. The proposed change it opens the
door to breaking faith with the users that pay into the HTF.
* HTF receipts could be used for non-highway and transit purposes;
* Highway and transit contract authority (created based on the user
fee principle) could be reduced and the “savings” used for deficit
reduction or other purposes; and
* As a result, the federal aid highway program would really be
general funded programs relying on annual appropriations rather than
multi-year funding.
2. The change creates create substantial uncertainty for
states, communities, businesses and their employees from year-to-year
and at a time that the nation -- in particular in the construction
industry-- can hardly afford it.
* Construction unemployment is at 18.8%. Introducing uncertainty
into federal investment, which accounts for about 45% of total highway
investment nationally, will put more people out of work.
* Uncertain federal funding undermines state and local
transportation planning processes. In fact, this rule change
contradicts existing requirements for state and metropolitan
multi-year planning and matching fund commitments.
* As a result, states and communities can't make commitments to
major multi-year capital investments like critical bridge replacement,
Interstate Highway System reconstruction, highway and transit capacity
expansion, and technologies that make transportation systems work
better.
* Investments in safety and economic infrastructure will be set aside.
* This rule promotes cutting already insufficient federal resources
for projects critical to U.S. exports competitiveness, economic
development, safety and quality of life.
* The short-sightedness of this change will hamper long-run economic growth.
You can reach the Capitol Hill office of current Members of Congress
by calling ARTBA's Action Hotline at 1-888-448-2782.
No comments:
Post a Comment