Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/622612
I DA U N I V E R S A L J a n u a r y - Fe b r u a r y 2 0 1 6 17 TRENDS AND TIDBITS Trends continued on page 31 For the fi rst time in a decade, the United States has long-term transportation funding, as both the House of Representatives and Senate voted overwhelmingly to pass the fi ve-year, $305 billion FAST Act. President Obama recently signed the bill into law. "Under the Act, funding will go up roughly 11 percent over fi ve years. is is a down-payment for building a 21st century transpor- tation system, though it is still far short of the amount needed to reduce congestion on our roads and meet the increasing demands on our transportation systems," U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said in a blog post. e bill cleared the House with a vote of 359-65, hours before the Senate passed it by a vote of 83-16. e bill cleared both chambers one day before the funding deadline for highway projects would have expired. e bill will spend $305 billion on roads and bridges over the next fi ve years, with funding from the gas tax and $70 billion in off sets to the federal budget. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pennsylvania) headed up the conference committee to fi nalize the bill and praised the bill's passage. " e FAST Act is one of the most important measures this Congress will pass," Shuster said. " is legislation will help repair and improve the critical trans- portation network that we all rely on every day to get to work, get our kids home safely from school, and get the goods and products we need. Obama Signs 5-year Highway Bill Into Law " is bill is an investment in America and the infrastructure that underpins our economy. I appreciate the work of all my colleagues on the Trans- portation Committee and the Conference Committee, on both sides of the aisle, in working to move this legislation forward for our country." Shuster's fellow committee member from across the aisle, Peter DeFazio (D-Oregon), said the bill isn't perfect, but it does provide more annual funding for roads and bridges than the original House bill. He also praised Shuster and the lawmakers he worked with in the conference committee. "A er 10 years of short-term band-aids and exten- sions, Congress will fi nally pass a long-term, bipartisan surface transportation bill that will begin to deal with our aging network of roads, bridges, and transit systems," DeFazio said. " is is a common-sense, bipar- tisan bill that provides our state and local governments with the certainty they need to begin to plan for long-term projects that bring our aging system into the 21st century." e bill easily passed with bipartisan support, but the 65 dissenters were all Republicans. U.S. Department of Transpor- tation Secretary Anthony Foxx echoed DeFazio's comments. "A er 36 extensions, hundreds of Congressional meetings, two bus tours, visits to 43 states, and so much uncertainty, it has been a long and bumpy ride to a long- term transportation bill," Foxx said. "It's not perfect, and there is still more le to do, but it refl ects a bipartisan compromise I always knew was possible." Both chambers passed their own long-term transportation funding bills this year. e House passed the six-year, $325 billion Surface Transportation Reautho- rization and Reform Act Nov. 5 with overwhelming bipartisan support. e Senate passed its long-term transportation bill, called the DRIVE Act, in June, but the House didn't act on it because of concerns regarding funding. e bill had funding for three years, but made commitments for six. e conference committee of members of the House and Senate met over the last week to hammer out the unifi ed FAST Act. ● www.equipmentworld.com. 12/4/15