"With a groundswell of support like this, backers of highway funding restoration should not accept half a loaf" by settling for only $4.4 billion in funding restoration, the floor now provided in the bills bringing funds up to TEA-21 authorized levels, said AASHTO President Brad Mallory. "With the nation's economy just turning the corner, and states looking at continuing economic challenges, splitting the difference means walking away from a powerful economic boost," said Mallory, Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

As of Friday, there were more than 300 cosponsors for the measure sponsored in the House by Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Don Young (R-AK) and 65 cosponsors for the matching measure sponsored by Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman James Jeffords (I-VT). Their legislation would restore $4.4 billion of the $8.6 billion in cuts -- compared with the $31.8 billion spending level for FY 2002 -- called for in the federal executive budget, to a funding level "no less than" $27.7 billion in 2003, the level authorized under TEA-21.

The cuts were triggered by an element of TEA-21 known as revenue-aligned budget authority, or RABA, which sends additional highway revenue over authorized levels to states during strong economic periods but can also go "negative," spurring cuts, if revenue into the Highway Trust Fund drops. U.S. Department of the Treasury projections showed such a cut in FY 2003.

The growth in support for the bipartisan and bicameral measures shows no sign of slowing down as the congressional budget committees prepare to start work on the FY 2003 budget resolutions next week.

House appropriators stepped into the fray this week by introducing a bill (H.R. 3900) that addresses the FY 2003 RABA reduction without affecting other discretionary programs. It has already attracted 50 sponsors. The bill directs that the RABA reduction in FY 2003, as proposed in the administration's budget, "shall have no force or effect." The appropriators' bill would eliminate the $4.4 billion RABA reduction for highways, thereby capping funding at the $27.7 billion TEA-21 level. The money would come from the $20.4 billion cash balance in the Highway Trust Fund. However, the measure also sets a restriction on efforts to add more funds to close the gap between the $4.4 billion and the $8.6 billion levels; additional funds could come only from FY 2003 discretionary funds allocated for transportation and put highways in direct competition with other modes.

Appropriations Chairman C.W. "Bill" Young (R-FL) and Ranking Member David Obey (D-WI) sent a letter this week to committee members criticizing the measure sponsored by Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Don Young (H.R. 3694), saying it "fails to actually provide the funding or raise the highway category." In addition, the appropriators state that H.R. 3694 provides no additional budget allocations, which would require reductions in other programs.

"We all can agree that the President's budget for highways is insufficient. The current RABA problem demonstrates the folly of TEA-21's automatic adjustment mechanisms and guaranteed funding provisions," the letter states.

All eyes are now on the House and Senate Budget Committees, which will begin work on the FY 2003 budget resolutions. There has been no indication from the House Budget Committee on whether it may provide room for additional highway spending. However, Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-ND) has called the proposed reduction "irresponsible." During a hearing last week, Conrad and other Budget Committee members expressed no support for the $8.6 billion cut proposed by the Bush Administration (AASHTO Journal, March 1).

With a balance of more than $19 billion in the Highway Trust Fund, Conrad has requested that the Congressional Budget Office assess the trust fund's capacity to be tapped for RABA cut replacement in FY 2003.

Deliberations by the Budget Committees in March could go a bit more smoothly, with news from the Congressional Budget Office that projected deficits in FY 2002 and FY 2003 could in fact change to modest surpluses, according to the Associated Press. In testimony before the Senate Budget Committee this week, CBO announced that the surplus in FY 2002 could reach $5 billion and $6 billion in FY 2003. In January, CBO was projecting multi-billion-dollar deficits through FY 2003.

The announcement, however, has put added pressure on budget members to keep the FY 2003 budget resolution in balance.

Mayors, County, MPO Groups Seek Reinstatement of Highway Funds

In the meantime, the U.S. Conference of Mayors - in conjunction with the National Association of Counties, the National League of Cities, the American Public Works Association, the Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations, the National Association of County Engineers, the National Association of Development Organizations, and the National Association of Regional Councils - has joined the call for support of the Highway Funding Restoration Act.

In letters to members of Congress and in testimony before the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee's Subcommittee on Highways and Transit by Fort Worth, Texas Mayor Kenneth Barr, the mayors and associated groups said the proposed cuts would harm the nation's fragile economy and disrupt transportation planning.

"Continued economic growth requires strong transportation investment in cities," Barr stated. "The impact of such a cut will be devastating to state and local transportation programs and the economy."

Barr said the nation's mayors "believe in the TEA-21 partnership" and hope to build on its successes "today, in regard to the FY 03 budget shortfall, and tomorrow, with the reauthorization."

Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-SD) introduced his 440-page energy bill in February, and it will serve as a vehicle for numerous expected amendments to promote use of alternative fuels, changes to the corporate average fuel efficiency requirement (CAFE), and oil exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve. At press time, floor action on the bill was proceeding slowly, but Daschle said he hopes to complete action on the bill by the end of next week.

Proposals in Daschle's bill to require gasoline refiners to triple their use of corn-based ethanol by 2012 and ban the use of its primary competitor, MTBE (methyl tertiary-butyl ether) by 2006 have raised concerns over those provisions' effects on highway funding. They would effectively boost ethanol production from the current 1.7 billion gallon level to 5 billion gallons.

Currently, the 5.3 cents-per-gallon tax subsidy for gasohol results in nearly $1 billion in lost revenues to Highway Trust Fund, and the American Highway Users Alliance has indicated that the figure could rise to $2.5 billion under Daschle's proposal. Under current law, gasohol comprised of 10 percent ethanol is taxed at 13 cents per gallon, compared to 18.4 cents per gallon for gasoline. Of that tax, 2.5 cents is deposited into the General Fund, rather than the Highway Trust Fund.

Amendments to Address Ethanol Effects on Trust Fund

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) has readied a package of energy tax provisions to be inserted into the energy bill, which was cleared by the Committee in February. Included in the package is a provision that would transfer the 2.5 cents of the ethanol tax from the General Fund to the Highway Trust Fund. In all, $16 billion may be required to offset the tax breaks.

Baucus is also readying another amendment to address the effects of the 5.3 cents-per-gallon exemption for ethanol. The amendment would retain the tax incentive for ethanol, and at the beginning of the fiscal year transfer -- from the General Fund to the Highway Trust Fund -- the amount equal to what would have been collected if ethanol was taxed at the same rate.

Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) is considering offering an amendment that would phase out the ethanol tax incentive as the market share for ethanol increases.

CAFE Increases to be Proposed

Efforts are also underway to boost the current 27.5 mpg CAFE standard for cars and 20.7 mpg standard for light trucks in the energy bill.

Sens. John Kerry (D-MA), Ernest Hollings (D-SC) and John McCain (R-AZ) have reportedly reached a compromise agreement to raise the CAFE standard to 36 mpg in the 2015 model year, while allowing automobile manufacturers to trade greenhouse-gas emissions credits. Kerry and Hollings originally proposed to increase vehicle fleet efficiency to 35 mpg for model year 2013, while McCain proposed a 36 mpg standard by model year 2016.

"The public believes that any money you pay at the pump should be invested in transportation. You didn't have to sell them any further," said Allen Zaremberg, president of the California Chamber of Commerce. Gas-tax proceeds in the state are about $1.4 billion a year.

Hollings, who chairs the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, called for reevaluation of the nation's passenger-rail policy, saying a strong federal role was needed to set up the nation's highway and aviation networks as well. "Now, federal investment in passenger rail infrastructure is critical."

His bill would reauthorize Amtrak from FY 2003 through FY 2007 and allocate $4.6 billion in funding each year. It would require specific amounts of funding annually, including $1.5 billion to develop high-speed rail corridors, $580 million to operate long-distance trains and $270 million for commuter and state-subsidized trains, plus $1.3 billion for rail security including life-safety upgrades in the rail tunnels in Baltimore and New York. The bill also would cover preliminary design costs for tunnels to replace those leading into Baltimore from the south, which are 125 years old.

Hollings proposes to keep Amtrak as the operator of all national passenger services, which runs counter to the recommendations of the Amtrak Reform Council (ARC) and Senator John McCain (R-AZ). They have suggested control of some corridors be handed off to other entities.

At a Thursday hearing of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee's Railroads Subcommittee, Administrator Allan Rutter of the Federal Railroad Administration said the current passenger-rail system in the U.S. is unsustainable "and has to be fixed." He said the administration is working on a set of principles but has not reached agreement.

Warrington, who was reported by the Washington Postto have accepted a job as executive director of New Jersey Transit but will reportedly remain at Amtrak, where he has served since late 1997, until a new chief executive is found, said Amtrak will not run out of cash in the current fiscal year, but must eliminate all long-distance routes and cut costs other ways in the absence of the $1.2 billion it has requested for FY 2003.

"In the end," he said, "it is all about money."

Congressional Pro and Con

Rep. Jack Quinn (R-NY), Chairman of the T&I Subcommittee on Railroads, asked members at the hearing to focus on "reforms that will enhance passenger-rail service." He contrasted federal spending levels on railroads with those for highways and aviation.

Though most committee members speaking at the hearing agreed with Ranking Minority Member Bob Clement (D-TN), who said Amtrak's current condition is caused in part by "inflicted and unfair federal policy," full T&I Committee Chairman Don Young (R-AK) and Rep. John Mica (R-FL) disagreed. Mica termed Amtrak "bankrupt" and said Congress gave Amtrak the tools it needed to succeed in 1997.

Young said Amtrak keeps "pointing fingers at everyone" and urged other members "not to keep putting money into a system that does not work."

Joe Boardman, Commissioner of the New York Department of Transportation and chairman of AASHTO's Standing Comimttee on Rail Transportation, said in a statement that "the nation must continue to invest in the national rail system, and continue to provide national intercity passenger-rail service that links our communities and joins us with our North American neighbors." For intercity passenger rail to succeed, Boardman siad, "it must provide safe, reliable, frequent and connected service" which will not occur without "adequate, predictable funding and careful integration of planning, operations and infrastructure investment."

United had sweetened the terms of its offer after its 12,800 unionized mechanics and cleaners rejected a previous offer three weeks ago and voted to authorize a strike. The revised 5-year contract offer was approved by a 59 percent majority.

"While there is a lot of work ahead of us, the settlement puts us in position to begin that work in earnest," said Jack Creighton, United's chief executive, who added he sees "light at the end of the tunnel" for the carrier, which has suffered significant financial losses in recent months. United lost a record $2.1 billion last year, AP reported.

The contract with members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers will give covered employees their first pay increase since 1994. Senior mechanics' pay will rise from $25.60 an hour to $35.14 - about $73,000 a year. Top-scale cleaners would see hourly pay go up by 19 percent to $19.76 per hour, or about $41,000 a year.

The sweetener was an increase in retroactive pay to each mechanic of $16,500; before the ratification it had been pegged at $12,500. The payments also will be made on an accelerated timetable, AP reported. Pensions also were boosted and workers will have a right to vote on concessions that may result from United's emergency recovery plans.

Further, in an attempt to curb severe congestion in the heart of London, the city's mayor has signed an order placing a 5-pound-per-day fee on drivers who enter the 8-square-mile zone, a sum equivalent to about $7 U.S. Though the Associated Press reported that environmentalists cheered that decision, set to begin in a year, groups representing both motorists and other types of commuters worried that the fee would create a shift in travel habits that might overload such facilities as the London-area subway system. Mayor Ken Livingstone's fee will be policed using a network of 230 video cameras, which would record license numbers and let checks be made to see whether the fee had been paid. Fines of more than $100 U.S. could be levied on violators.

The nationwide proposal -- whose chief champion, Integrated Transport Commission Chairman David Begg, admits it's a longshot politically -- has led to opponents dubbing the tracking meters a "Big Brother" concept, despite promises of strict controls to protect drivers' privacy. According to The Observer, officials would be able to levy varying user fees, with plans to ramp them up - to as high as 65 U.S. cents per mile - during hours of highest congestion. The "road-pricing" program would supplant existing annual road taxes and spur a reduction in per-liter fuel taxes.

Whether the British government will embrace the proposal remains to be seen, the Observer noted: transportation now is a source of controversy on several fronts, ranging from aggravation with severe road congestion to problems with the nation's rail system and concerns about air traffic control.

"I am not going to be surprised or upset if ministers distance themselves from this, because politically it could give them a headache," Begg told The Observer. However, "just because road pricing is politically extremely difficult does not mean it is wrong.

Motorists must enroll in the "passkey" segment of the area toll-tag payment system, according to the Dallas Morning News, and after that are able to go directly to the food-delivery window of the drive-through without having to stop first at the payment window. Restaurant staff will ask drivers before clearing the debit through to the account.

"As people are spending more time in their cars, and their lifestyles are becoming more harried, any time we can add technology to make their lives easier, we want to look at it," said Johnathan Kelley, vice president of operations for the Baibrook Partnership, which owns 42 McDonalds' restaurants in the Dallas area. Using the toll-tag system will shorten waits at the drive-throughs by up to 20 seconds per transaction.

The equipment used to scan the windshield tags is being furnished free of charge to the restaurants during a six-month experimental period. Similar trials have been under way in Los Angeles and New York, the Morning News reported.

Designated are: George Ostenson, FHWA Program Manager for Safety, to the Standing Committee on Highway Traffic Safety; Christine Johnson, FHWA Program Manager for Operations, to the Subcommittee on Transportation Systems Management and Operations; Tommy Beatty, Director of FHWA's Office of Pavement Technology, to the Subcommittee on Construction; Jeffrey Lindley, Director of the Office of Travel Management, to the Subcommittee on Advanced Transportation Systems; Shelly Row, Director of the Office of Transportation Operations, to the Subcommittee on Traffic Engineering; and Susan Lauffer, Director of FHWA's Office of Real Estate Services, to the Subcommittee on Right-of-Way and Utilities.