Senate to Pursue Two-Year Transportation Bill at Current Funding Level - Chairwoman Boxer Compares Senate to Anticipated House Levels

In a news conference on Wednesday, July 6, Senate Environment and Public Works Chairwoman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) said that her committee would seek to pass a two-year surface transportation reauthorization bill; instead of a six-year bill that she had previously said was her goal. Boxer said the bill will maintain current funding levels while adjusting for inflation, authorizing $109 billion over two years. Acknowledging that current Highway Trust Fund revenue will not support this level of investment, Boxer said that roughly $6 billion a year in supplemental revenue must be identified to support this proposal. She stopped short of calling for a gas tax increase and said that any funding decisions were ultimately up to the Finance Committee. Calling her bill "modest," Boxer said a two-year bill would be easier to both pay for and pass in the current fiscal climate and that the need for the extra infrastructure spending was necessary to boost the economic recovery. During the press conference, Chairwoman Boxer also released a chart comparing her proposed state-by-state highway funding levels with the funding levels that would be possible under the House-passed budget resolution. For more information, please contact Brian Deery at (703) 837-5319 or deeryb@agc.org.