April 15, 2019 – Reports of progress on infrastructure funding last week may have been, shall we say, premature. Instead of stoking the fire, hopes are now extinguishing. In the House, leadership reportedly wants to move forward with a big infrastructure bill, hyping up the idea at a Democratic retreat last week, but details are scarce, according to Politico’s Morning Transportation…
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Infrastructure Talks Rumored
April 12, 2019 – Democratic leaders in Congress said they would seek President Donald Trump’s support in coming weeks for legislation to invest up to $2 trillion to rebuild U.S. infrastructure, including roads, bridges and schools. This episode of one-upmanship follows Trump’s long-standing line about $1 trillion in spending. Anyone want to propose $3 trillion? The problem is, everybody wants to…
Read MoreTransportation Topics
March 4, 2019 – What we have here, is a failure to communicate. That is the view of several key transportation association executives, expressed during a recent roundtable session at the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ 2019 Washington Briefing. “It’s easy to talk about it, but hard to start advancing bills,” said Dave Bauer, president and CEO of…
Read MoreGas Tax Talk
Feb. 11, 2019 – For the first time in a long time, talk about increasing the gas tax is heating up, and an increase could become a reality. According to a report on Politico, at least one Republican wants his colleagues to make the leap – and to risk their careers if they have to. John Katko (R-N.Y.), a member of the…
Read MoreChamber President Calls for Gas Tax Increase
Every year, U.S. Chamber President and CEO Tom Donohue outlines the top challenges facing the business community and lays out the U.S. Chamber’s policy priorities for the year. Infrastructure was front and center in Donahue’s most-current remarks, which he made on Jan. 10.
Read MoreVoters Approve Transportation Investment at the Ballot Box
In the midterm elections, voters in 31 states once again showed their support for transportation infrastructure investments, approving 272, or 79 percent, of 346 state and local ballot measures. In total, the approved initiatives are expected to generate over $30 billion in one-time and recurring revenue, according to the analysis conducted by the American Road & Transportation Builders Association’s Transportation…
Read MoreGas Tax Supporters in 12 States Cruise Through Primaries
Ninety-six percent of state lawmakers who voted in favor of a gas tax increase and faced reelection in 2018 primaries will advance to the Nov. 6 general election, according to new data from the American Road & Transportation Builders Association’s Transportation Investment Advocacy Center (ARTBA-TIAC).
Read MoreShuster Poised to Release Infrastructure Bill Framework
July 23, 2018 – There are once again rumblings regarding an infrastructure bill. House Transportation Chairman Bill Shuster told Politico that he will soon release a framework proposal. Shuster said his discussion draft would “cover all the bases in infrastructure” and “deal with all the policy pieces,” including pay-fors. With his retirement looming, Shuster has the added benefit of being able to go…
Read MoreRepeal the California Gas Tax?
July 17, 2018 – Last year in California, legislators enacted a 12-cents-per-gal. gas tax hike to boost funding to repair California’s decaying roads and bridges. But now, Proposition 6, which will be on the ballot in November, seeks to repeal that gas tax. It looks to be an epic clash that crosses ideological boundaries. Read about it here.
Read MoreI Like It When They Listen To Me
Feb. 15, 2018 – It looks like President Trump read my February issue editorial. He reportedly tried to persuade his fellow Republicans to raise the gas tax, according to a story in the Washington Post. In a closed-door meeting on infrastructure with members of both parties, Trump pitched the idea of a 25-cent increase in the gas tax, which hasn’t been raised since 1993. There’s a growing…
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