The bill, H.R. 3694, would allow highway obligations to be set at $27.7 billion, the level authorized by the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21).

AASHTO Executive Director John Horsley applauded the passage of the bill saying, "The House of Representatives took a major step today to restore highway funding for FY 2003, save jobs and to preserve the principle of fully using highway revenues for transportation purposes.

"While the revenue-aligned budget authority (RABA) provision needs fine-tuning to avoid dramatic swings, it is essential to keep faith with Americans that the taxes they pay at the pump are used for their benefit, as guaranteed under TEA-21. Restoring highway funds and preserving RABA are also crucial to the upcoming reauthorization of highway and transit programs next year," Horsley said.

"We appreciate the work of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in advancing the Highway Funding Restoration Act, and amassing such strong bipartisan support for the bill," he concluded.

Bill Calls for RABA Reforms

The proposed $8.6 billion cut from FY 2002 highway funding levels was included in the President's budget proposal as a result of the RABA calculations. That mechanism ties highway spending to the level of Highway Trust Fund receipts collected -- dubbed the "look-back provision" -- and to receipts forecast, known as "look-forward." Since Highway Trust Fund revenues fell as a result of reduced travel and lower truck sales, the highway program took a double hit in both the reconciliation of past projections and reduced future projections. A number of proposals are being analyzed to revise RABA to smooth out the potential for radical swings.

Governors and state transportation officials have urged Congress to restore the full $8.6 billion cut, and the House bill specifies that the highway funding be increased by "at least" as much as $4.4 billion. During floor debate on Wednesday, Rep. James Oberstar (D-MN), Ranking Minority Member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said that he hopes that the House bill will serve as a beginning in restoring highway funding to the maximum that could be supported by the Highway Trust Fund, some $30 billion annually.

The House bill would place the additional $4.4 billion behind the budgetary firewall to ensure that it is spent for highway purposes, and specifies that for FY 2003, the RABA adjustment would be "zero." The legislation also includes a "sense-of-Congress" provision that states RABA should be "amended in the future to more accurately align highway spending with highway revenues while maintaining predictability and stability in highway funding levels."

Leaders of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, including Chairman Don Young (R-AK) had rounded up 317 cosponsors for the bill, setting the stage for its resounding passage. They also negotiated a compromise agreement with the House Appropriations Committee to include the language of the bill in the supplemental appropriations bill reported this week by committee.

Bill Expected to be Added to Supplemental Appropriations

The Appropriations Committee reported its $29.4 billion supplemental appropriations bill on Wednesday. Appropriators hope to see the bill move to the House for action before the Memorial Day recess begins May 24. It is anticipated that when the bill is taken up, H.R. 3694, the Highway Funding Restoration Act, will be inserted in the supplemental appropriations bill.

That was the compromise reached between House appropriators and authorizers, each of which had supported restoring $4.4 billion in highway funds, but with differing language. The appropriators' approach would declare the revenue-aligned budget authority "null and void." The bill introduced by House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Don Young would declare RABA to be zero for FY 2003. The leaders of the authorizing committee were concerned that declaring the provision null and void would eliminate it and set a precedent for the reauthorization of federal highway and transit programs next year.

As a concession to appropriators, the Transportation and Infrastructure leaders agreed to declare 49 transportation projects included in the FY 2002 appropriations bill as eligible for federal funding, despite the determination by the U.S. Department of Transportation that they were ineligible for federal funds. (See related article.)

Senate Awaits House Action

Meanwhile, appropriators in the Senate are holding off on any action on a supplemental appropriation until the House completes its measure. It is reported that because of the lateness of the supplemental, the Senate may abandon any attempt to take up its budget resolution, and move directly to work on the 13 major appropriations bills, once the supplemental is approved.

Leonard, who is the vice-chairman of AASHTO's Standing Committee on Planning, outlined the perspective of state DOTs on freight planning, financial constraints and land use decision making during the hearing held by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. He also cited examples of smart-growth initiatives in the states, including AASHTO's work in the area of context-sensitive design.

Noting that international trade will triple and domestic trade will double over the next 20 years, Leonard said it was essential that states and Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) consider the impacts of such trade in the planning process. He noted that as part of its reauthorization recommendations AASHTO has proposed a $10 million annual program to strengthen freight transportation planning, and an increase in funding for freight research at the federal level. He also recommended the creation of a Freight Advisory Council to communicate the industry's views and needs.

Addressing the "financial constraint" requirements in planning, Leonard said that they were intended to avoid the creation of "wish lists" of transportation projects for which funds were unlikely to be available. In application, however, he said that the current regulations limit a state's flexibility in reprogramming funds if a project becomes delayed, or if additional state resources become available. He made several specific recommendations to add flexibility to the requirements.

Leonard stressed that local governments should retain the decision making on local land use, and added that the current balance of responsibilities should be maintained in transportation decision-making.

Also addressing the hearing was Cynthia Burbank, the program manager for planning and environment core business unit at the Federal Highway Administration. She urged better coordination between state and local planners and zoning authorities in making land-use decisions.

Mineta commended 11 publicly supported agencies from eight states and Washington, DC, as pioneers in providing choices for commuters in dealing with congestion and the challenge of getting to work. "I am pleased to recognize these pioneer agencies that are helping to expand the choices for commuters," Mineta said. "By improving the choices available for commuters to get to work, they are playing an important role in reducing the overall impact of congestion and protecting the environment."

Commuter Choice programs are intended to help reduce traffic congestion and enable employees to get to work more efficiently. Traffic congestion cost Americans $78 billion in 1999 according to the Federal Highway Administration. On average during 1999, Americans spent 36 hours stuck in traffic. Since 1970, the country's population increased by 38 percent and highway travel during that same time period grew by 148 percent.

"Everyone wins with Commuter Choice," Peters said. "America wins, because reducing the number of cars on the road reduces traffic congestion, improves air quality and conserves energy. Individual travelers win because they can choose to use alternate forms of transportation."

The 11 Commuter Choice pioneers recognized by the U.S. Department of Transportation are: King County (Washington) Department of Transportation; Seattle, Washington State Department of Transportation; CARAVAN for Commuters, Inc., Boston; The Rideshare Company, Windsor, CT RIDES for Bay Area Commuters; Oakland, CA Metro Commuter Services; St. Paul, MN Ride Arrangers Program; Denver Regional Council of Governments TMA Group; Franklin, TN Valley Metro; Phoenix, AZ Commuter Connections; Metropolitan Washington (DC) Area Council of Governments; and the Washington (DC) Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.

In honor of National Transportation Week, the Secretary traveled on a bus across the eastern half of the United States, stopping in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Missouri to participate in transportation-related events.

Federal Highway Administrator Mary Peters, AASHTO President Brad Mallory, U.S. DOT Inspector General Kenneth Mead, Federal Transit Administrator Jenna Dorn, Missouri DOT Secretary Henry Hungerbeeler, U.S. Department of Labor Inspector General Gordon Heddell and AASHTO Director of Management and Business Development Jack Basso were among those attending.

The work now facing AASHTO's membership, to garner highway program reauthorization funds for the next six years, "gives us more reason than ever to fight the fraudulent conversion of our funds by people who don't care whether our customers get good value for their tax money," Mallory told the conferees. "We have to work like crazy to get the funds that finance our infrastructure in the first place, and when you put in that sort of effort, you have no patience with parasites who exist to skim the cream."

Mallory noted the decades of work by AASHTO committees in setting standards for highway design and quality, its history of cooperation with law enforcement when fraud has been detected, and its project-management computer program that can help states detect patterns that may point to bid-rigging. And Mallory praised the work of the AASHTO Task Force on Project Oversight, which shares good practices among the states, develops guidance documents for the states, and formulates recommendations that will be considered by the AASHTO Board of Directors at the Annual Meeting in October.

"Even with the major investment we have been allowed to make through the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century, there is not now nor will there be for the foreseeable future enough money to do everything we need to do, and do it right," Mallory said. "So we can't spare a dime for waste, fraud, or abuse of the systems that help us deliver for the customers."

Mead praised the management of such projects as the Utah Interstate 15 renovation, California's Alameda Corridor project and the Hudson-Bergen transit project in New Jersey. But he said other projects may need stronger oversight, and that vigilance is always necessary.

"All of us are stakeholders," Mead said. "We can achieve all these objectives - protect the taxpayers' investment, deliver the projects, prevent and attack fraud ... by working together collaboratively at all levels of government rather than by going our separate ways."

"The heightened threat of terrorism introduces new imperatives, of a type never faced before, to the nation's transportation system," Hungerbeeler told the symposium. Joining him were Commissioner Elwyn Tinklenberg of Minnesota and Executive Director John R. Njord of Utah, providing state perspectives and recommendations on key transportation operations and security issues. The event was sponsored by the Subcommittee on Transportation, Infrastructure and Nuclear Safety of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

Hungerbeeler emphasized transportation's role in emergency response and recovery from major incidents, including the need to improve overall capabilities to manage traffic and other infrastructure priorities. Some can be financed through the upcoming TEA-21 reauthorization, while others will require general funding from Congress, he said. The latter include funding for the Office of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Hungerbeeler specified AASHTO's recommendations to strengthen transportation security:

• More funding for existing core programs, to aid military mobilizations along major routes;
• More funding in current programs that rebuild or replace highways to include specific hardening against terrorist attack, including an estimated $1 billion for communications equipment that can be used by emergency responders for both everyday and unusual events;
• Approximately $100 million a year to help state DOTs integrate anti-terrorist strategies in updated emergency-response plans;
• Planning separately for safety and security - now weighed as a single category - in statewide and metropolitan plans;
• Expediting the planning and environmental process for security-focused projects;
• Funding security measures for freight movement, particularly the way cargo containers are tracked and border checkpoints are maintained; and
• Moving at least $500 million a year from existing programs to improve transportation information and management.

The former American Automobile Association said 35.2 million people in the U.S. are expected to travel at least 50 miles from their homes over the holiday weekend - a 1 percent increase over last year's 34.9 million people traveling at least that far over Memorial Day weekend, 2001.

AAA expressed optimism that U.S. travel and tourism are recovering following the survey, which was done going into the first major summer travel weekend since the U.S. terrorist attacks of last Sept. 11.

"AAA is optimistic that this summer should not only be better than last year, but that the travel industry truly is on the road to recovery," said Sandra Hughes, Vice President for AAA Travel. "Americans are moving past 9-11 and are looking to resume their normal travel habits."

Air travel, however, may continue to lag, AAA said. The group expects 4.1 million people to fly to their Memorial Day weekend destinations, compared with 4.4 million who used that mode in 2001 before the terrorist events.

The National Conference of State Legislatures reports that a total of $27 billion in emergency cuts has been made by 40 states and the District of Columbia to deal with lowered revenues following several months of nationwide recession. Some states are looking to familiar sources for funds - raising cigarette taxes or a variety of fees - while other states are paring spending wherever possible or even using bookkeeping devices to alter the way their budget is represented.

The situation is perhaps most dire in California, the Times reported - as Gov. Gray Davis proposed closing a $23.6 billion shortfall, equal to one-third of the state's entire budget, by raising vehicle license fees and cigarette taxes and making sharp cuts in health programs and local-government aid programs.

Other state approaches cited by the Times include:

• Missouri, which is so cash-strapped it has stopped sending out income-tax refunds totaling about $170 million from more than 400,000 taxpayers. Officials say they will resume the mailings when the state's income picture improves.
• Wisconsin, which is considering issuing bonds secured by the state's share of the national cash settlement with tobacco companies for state costs of caring for people whose health was impaired by smoking. The effect of that approach would be to spend all 30 years of state share over the next two years, the Times reported.
• New Jersey, where Gov. James E. McGreevey - who does not face an election this year - has cut state agency budgets by 5 percent and has reduced construction and maintenance projects.
• Connecticut, where the state deficit has been handled with a 61-cent-per-pack boost in cigarette taxes.

NCSL also reported that 17 states have cut aid to elementary and secondary education, or are considering it. Further, 29 states are considering cuts in higher ed, 25 are looking at cuts in prison spending and 22 are looking at cutting Medicaid; at least 10 are considering state employee layoffs, the Times reported.

Some observers told the newspaper that states are hoping for a quick return to prosperity, and as a result their legislatures are not willing to bite the bullet for higher taxes or fees. However, two factors are likely to make that outcome unlikely: first is the lack of taxation on services, which in many states is a huge sector of the economy.

Breakdowns and accidents cause half the congestion on Washington state highways. "For every minute a blockage exists, it causes 5 to 10 minutes of backup," said Jim Shanafelt, state traffic operations engineer. "The sooner we can get there, the sooner we can open traffic."

Under a $3 million program, the existing 19 "incident-response vehicles (IRT)," will increase to 38 beginning in July.

Robin Hartsell, a spokesperson for the Washington DOT, said the trucks have responded to nearly 3,000 incidents since Jan. 1. Five of the existing 19 vehicles are state tow trucks and beginning July 3, the state will add five more. Along with the tow trucks, the other IRT vehicles include large trucks that can push disabled cars off roadways, flash warning signs to oncoming cars and carry crews to clean up debris, change flat tires and give gas to motorists.

"It's a wonderful thing for the state of Oklahoma, because it means more money is available to keep our roads safe and keep our roads in top condition," said Holly Lowe, the authority's acting director. The Oklahoma Transportation Authority operates the state's turnpikes.

The bonds originally were sold in 1989 and 1992, but the agency chose to refinance the bonds to take advantage of low interest rates. By selling the $569 million in revenue bonds, the authority will save $50.1 million, officials said.