Highway Trust Fund fix

According to ARTBA, following months of having legislation to prevent a Highway Trust Fund (HTF) revenue shortfall blocked by a handful of senators, the U.S. Senate has approved the House-passed trust fund fix, H.R. 6532, by voice vote. The action follows reports from the U.S. Department of Transportation last week that the trust fund’s revenue situation had worsened significantly over the last two months and that the department is about to begin providing states only partial reimbursements for federal-aid highway projects.

While Senators Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), and Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) had previously said they wanted to offer amendments to the bill, they agreed to allow the measure to move forward after Senate leaders committed to 90 minutes of floor debate. The three senators criticized the bill, crediting the HTF for $8 billion in highway user fee revenue transferred to the general fund in 1998, as deficit spending.

The Senate included a technical modification to the House bill that would allow funds to be spent in the remaining weeks of FY 2008 to prevent the looming shortfall. As such, the revised H.R. 6532 must now go back to the House of Representatives for action before it can be sent to President Bush for his expected signature.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.), Senate Environment & Public Works (EPW) Committee Chairman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), EPW Committee Ranking Republican James Inhofe (R-Okla.), Senate Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Patty Murray (D-Wash.), and Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) spoke in favor of the HTF fix. ARTBA joined 22 other national organizations and labor unions (including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Manufacturers, and American Trucking Associations) in a letter today urging all senators to support H.R. 6532.

While there are still several steps that must be taken before this crisis is ultimately averted, the action in the Senate overcomes a major hurdle . Your comment?