WASHINGTON — Worried that money for the nation’s roads and bridges could soon dry up, a House committee Thursday approved an $11 billion outlay so work can continue during the warm weather construction season.
The legislation, approved by voice vote in the Ways and Means Committee, adds the money to the Highway Trust Fund, which provides funding for the nation’s construction and maintenance of roads, railways, and airports. The fund was due to run out of money by the end of August, mainly because of a decrease in gas consumption over the years. Gas taxes are a main contributor to the fund.
The bill will now move to the full House for vote.
The legislation would provide enough money to continue work on roads and other infrastructure up until May 31, 2015.
Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp, R-Mich., vowed to call a hearing to come up with a long term, bipartisan solution to avoid jeopardizing the health of the trust fund in the future.
If the Highway Trust Fund were not replenished, more than 100,000 projects across the country would be delayed.
The money is being scraped from areas that have nothing much to do with transportation, as Rep. Xavier Becerra, D-Calif., noted. One billion dollars of the money will come from a federal fund for leaking and underground storage tanks containing hazardous waste, such as petroleum. The remainder of the money would come from what is known as “pension smoothing,” which would allow employers to delay contributions to their employees’ pension plans.
Committee members were unhappy that the bill offered only a short term solution and would prolong the effort to fashion a long term solution for financing infrastructure work.
Rep. Allyson Schwartz, D-Pa., said we need to “not just patch the potholes, but need to create an infrastructure for the 21st century – and we will fall behind if we don’t.”
Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., chimed in with other Democrat members, pleading for action on an issue that does not appear to be party related. “We don’t have Democratic bridges or Republican bridges, we have bridges. We have roads.”