Transportation Security
Since September 11, 2001, transportation security has emerged as a key policy issue for Congress. The over-arching issue for the 108th Congress is what reasonable security actions can be taken in each transportation mode without excessively impeding commerce and travel. In the 107th Congress, there was extensive attention as well as resources targeted towards strengthening airport security and safety. The Secure Transportation for America Act of 2001 established a new Transportation Security Administration (TSA) that is responsible for the security of all modes of transportation, passenger and cargo.

Amtrak
Over the past several years, Amtrak has experienced extreme financial hardship. In short, Amtrak does not earn enough revenue or receive enough federal assistance to cover its operating and capital needs. Amtrak revenues are around $2 billion a year, but it spends nearly $3 billion a year, producing operating deficits of almost $1 billion in recent years. In addition, it has around $3 billion in long-term debt and capital lease obligations, and nearly $6 billion in backlogged capital maintenance work. As a longtime supporter of Amtrak, Congressman Fattah was in full support of the funding provisions included in the Omnibus Appropriations bill for FY2003. The bill provided $1.05 billion for Amtrak (minus a 0.65% across the board cut), plus a $105 million loan repayment extension (H.J.Res. 2, the FY2003 Omnibus Appropriations bill). This is considerably more than the Administrationïs FY2003 request of $521 million. In a press rel ease, Amtrak stated that "the funding level should be sufficient to operate the national system for the remainder of the fiscal year."