Transportation Conference Committee Continues Deliberations

House and Senate staff continue to meet to negotiate various provisions in the transportation reauthorization legislation. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chair Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), who is serving as the chair of the conference committee, set June 7, 2012 as the target date for having a compromise measure completed. The current authorization extension expires on June 30 and she hopes to have legislation to the President by then.  Sen. Boxer is also conducting one-on-one meetings with House conferees in an attempt to identify key issues that need to be worked out. The bigger provisions, such as approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, preventing fly ash from being classified as a hazardous waste, and how to pay for the bill, will be the final issues resolved and will likely come from leadership. This week AGC of America communicated with chapters that have members on the conference committee and asked that they send these members AGC’s recommendations. A last push effort is necessary to emphasize the urgency for passing a transportation reauthorization bill before the June 30 deadline. You are asked to contact your representatives to urge them to make enactment of a transportation reauthorization bill a priority. Contact with your members can be made through AGC’s Legislative Action Center. Your elected representatives need to hear from you. Please don’t delay – send a message now! For more information, please contact Brian Deery at (703) 837-5319 or deeryb@agc.org.