Congress Adjourns-No Stimulus Package

Despite AGC's success in getting the House and Senate to finally draft stimulus bills with infrastructure investment, the 110th Congress adjourned on October 3 without passing stimulus legislation.   AGC worked over the past year to convince Congress and the White House to include construction investment programs in any economic stimulus proposals by meeting with congressional leaders, writing a strong message to both the House and Senate and signing onto letters from transportation related coalitions.  Senate leadership left open the possibility of returning for a "lame duck" session following the elections, but the House did not. Depending on the economy, Speaker Pelosi has suggested that the House may return following the elections to try again to enact a stimulus bill. In late September, the House passed an economic stimulus bill (264-158) which included approximately $34 billion for infrastructure investment, including $12.8 billion for the federal-aid highway program; $3.6 billion for transit; $600 million for airport capital improvement projects; $7.5 billion for water infrastructure; $5 billion for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; $3 billion for public school reconstruction; $500 million for Amtrak; and $1 billion for public housing construction. The Senate also took up an economic stimulus bill which would have provided about $25 billion in infrastructure spending. Proposed spending items included $8 billion for the highway program; $2 billion for transit; $400 million for airport capital improvement projects; $500 million for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; $600 million for wastewater infrastructure; $800 million for rural facilities construction; $350 million for Amtrak; $2 billion for public school reconstruction; and $770 million for federal building and facilities construction. The Senate bill failed on a procedural vote (52-42). Congress also failed to enact an appropriations bill to fund the Department of Transportation and other major federal construction programs for FY 2009. Therefore, DOT and other programs were included in a continuing resolution (CR), which provides funding at the 2008 level through March 6, 2009. The CR, which was signed into law on September 30, included three of the 12 annual appropriations measures Congress was able to complete prior to the end of the FY, including Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, Defense and Homeland Security Appropriations Acts, as well as a disaster relief package. Congress will need to take additional action before March 6 to fund federal construction programs for the remainder of FY 2009.