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TEA-21 Reauthorization Debate Underway

With the amended Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) due to run its course at the end of September, the sides working for reauthorization remain miles apart.

The Bush Administration proposed funding the highway and transit program at approximately $36.5 billion for fiscal year 2004. The Administration is reportedly calling for a six-year package totaling $247 billion, a 19% increase over the level guaranteed by TEA-21.

But the US House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure wants closer to $50 billion in the first year of the so-called “TEA-3.” Chaired by Don Young (R-Alaska), the committee is considering proposals that would increase the investment in highways and transit projects to $375 billion for the same six-year period.

The transportation design and construction community, which avidly supported TEA-21 and its landmark predecessor ISTEA (The Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991), is following the debate with interest. Industry organizations such as the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and the American Road & Transportation Builders of America (ARTBA) maintain separate pages on their websites dedicated exclusively to the reauthorization issue.

In testimony to the House Budget Committee on March 6, Young said, “My committee believes we cannot afford to merely maintain the status quo. The status quo is strangling our economy, limiting our mobility, and affecting our daily lives to an unacceptable degree.”

The USDOT Conditions and Performance Report
A report from the US Department of Transportation backs the need for more transportation funding. In its Conditions and Performance Report, the department found that a combined federal highway and transit program of $53 billion is needed annually just to maintain the nation’s highways and transit systems in their current condition. To upgrade these systems, including safety improvements and traffic congestion relief, a federal program size of $74.8 billion is needed annually, the report says.

Young’s committee is considering several options for funding its $375 billion proposal, including raising the gas tax. The Bush Administration has said it does not support increases in taxes or user fees to fund the program. Recent increases in gas prices and the current anti-tax sentiment in Washington also diminish the likelihood that new taxes or user fees will drive increases in the program.

High Public Support for Transportation Improvements
However, at least one recent survey indicates that Americans believe there’s a transportation crisis and that they’d be willing to pay slightly more in taxes to help improve the state of the nation’s transportation system.

A survey by research firm Zogby International found that 64% of Americans would support a small annual increase in the federal motor fuels user fee if the money were used only to improve roads, bridges, and transit. When he released the report in March, CEO John Zogby said, “Our polling in many issues over the years has revealed that voters will support a tax hike if the issue is important to them and they are convinced that the money will be spent wisely. Given the increase in gas prices over the past six months, the steady level of support among voters for a gasoline tax increase indicates a depth of support that is firm and not likely to be easily shaken.”

In addition to raising the gas tax, the House committee is considering a number of measures to achieve its goals for TEA-3, including:

“This is a proactive approach to addressing a growing national crisis,” Young said. “America’s congestion and safety crisis will not just go away— it must be dealt with immediately. Our proposal will play a major role in moving our aging transportation system into the 21st century.”