THE NUMBER 1 RESOURCE FOR VOCATIONAL TRUCK FLEETS
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has finally scheduled a hearing to mark up its version of a long-term highway funding bill for Oct. 22 – seven days before the current short-term patch authorizing spending on transportation runs out.
The Coalition of Northeastern Governors is urging transportation leaders on Capitol Hill “to act quickly to ensure continuity and stability of the nation's highway, transit, rail and safety programs and the Highway Trust Fund.”
A provision allowing liquefied natural gas and propane autogas to be taxed equally with diesel fuel by energy content was passed as part of the three-month highway bill patch.
The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed a highway and transportation bill that included a provision that would change how certain alternative fuels are taxed in relation to conventional fuels.
With a voice vote on Saturday, the U.S. Senate approved the two-month extension of the highway bill that was passed by the House of Representatives last Tuesday. The legislation now awaits the expected signature of President Obama.
With one week left to pass a short-term funding extension two key Democratic lawmakers have introduced a measure to extend the authorization of surface transportation programs into this July.
Bipartisan legislation introduced in the U.S. House Thursday would index the current federal gasoline and diesel fuel taxes to inflation, raising $27.5 billion to ensure highway-infrastructure spending is funded for exactly 1.7 years.
More attention is being paid this week to legislating infrastructure funding as the expiration date on the current MAP-21 highway bill looms ever closer - not that deadlines mean much on Capitol Hill.
Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx has signaled that he does not oppose Congress applying a short-term fix to keep the Highway Trust Fund solvent before it runs out entirely this summer.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx announced that $500 million will be made available for surface-transportation projects under the TIGER competitive-grant program this year.