AGC Member Videos Highlight Message With the Senate completing action on a six-year transportation reauthorization bill before the August recess, focus has shifted to the House. The House has indicated that they will work on their version of a long-term highway & transit bill when they return to Washington after Labor Day. Use your Congressman’s time in the state to meet with them on the importance of passing a long-term, fully funded transportation bill. Resources to help you schedule meetings can be found on the Hardhats for Highway “Meet with Congress” page.

More Information at meetings.agc.org/highway Get up-to-date information on a variety of issues that will impact the highway and transportation construction markets over the next year. The 2015 AGC Highway Contractors Conference will be held Nov. 5-7, 2015, at the JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort & Spa. Industry professionals from companies involved in building highway, bridge, transit, airport runway and rail projects will benefit from this conference. The conference will feature presentations and discussions on major trends in highway construction, including:

Senate Approves DRIVE Act, House to Focus on Long-Term Bill in Sept. The Senate today approved H.R. 22, the Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy (DRIVE) Act by a vote of 65-34. Thank you to those who have contacted their Senators over the past week, urging support for this long-term highway & transit bill. Our focus now shifts to the House, which has not yet begun action on a long-term bill. Contact your representative and tell them to pass a long-term bill when they return to Congress in September.

Construction employment declined in 127 metro areas, was stagnant in 51 and increased in 180 between June 2014 and June 2015, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials noted that the declines come as the House and Senate struggle to enact legislation to extend federal transportation investments beyond the July 31st expiration of the current program.

Thank You for Contacting Your Senators and Asking Them for Their Support The Senate voted 62-36 yesterday to begin debate on the long-term highway & transit bill known as the “Drive Act.” The vote now opens the bill up for debate, amendments and hopefully approval before the July 31 program expiration deadline. Thank you to all who contacted their senators asking them to support beginning debate on this bill. Please now take a moment to thank your Senators who voted “yes” and express your disappointment to your Senators who voted “no” to move this transportation bill forward in the Senate.

On Wednesday, the House approved H.R. 3038, the “Highway and Transportation Funding Act of 2015, Part II” by a 312-119 vote. The bill extends highway and transit program authorization until December 18, 2015 and transfers $8.07 billion from the general fund into the Highway Trust Fund. The transfer allows highway funding to continue at current levels past the end of the fiscal year and into most of the first quarter of FY 2016.

As detailed below, the Senate is preparing to start consideration of a long-term transportation reauthorization bill. Now is the time to contact your Senators!

Rep. Tom Rice (R-S.C.) this week introduced the "Highway Trust Fund Certainty Act," legislation that would increase the federal motor fuels tax and provide an income tax credit to offset the cost of the increase to the average tax payer. Rice is a self- proclaimed conservative and his support for the motor fuels tax increase is significant. In a letter to other House members urging support for the bill Rep. Rice said, "As Congress has debated the Highway Trust Fund insolvency, two things have become clear: a user-fee system is the most reasonable and reliable, and there are no "silver bullet" revenue streams available."

Yesterday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) indicated that he wants the Senate to start work on a highway bill next week. However, it is unclear whether the majority leader has identified a specific source of Highway Trust Fund revenue to pay for a multiyear transportation bill.

The United States Department of Transportation recently updated its Highway Trust Fund Ticker, and the projections are not good. If Congress fails to intervene, the highway account will dip below its critical $4 billion balance by the end of July and will be insolvent the first week of September. According to the department, if no new revenue is found for the trust fund, federal officials may consider implementing cash management procedures to manage the flow of federal dollars. If that happens, reimbursements to states for infrastructure work will be limited to the available cash in the trust fund.