House Dem: Highway funding patch ‘unacceptable’

Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) said Monday that a temporary transportation funding extension would be “unacceptable” because Congress should be working on a long-term bill to boost the nation’s infrastructure. 

Lawmakers are scrambling to beat a May 31 deadline for extending federal transportation funds that are currently set to expire. 

Republican leaders have talked about passing a $10 billion patch to extend transportation funding until the end of the year, but Blumenauer said temporary extensions are not sufficient enough to address the nation’s infrastructure needs. 

{mosads}“Investing in our roads and bridges creates good jobs and is essential to making our communities more efficient, livable, walkable, bikeable and accessible by transit,” Blumenauer said in a statement. 

“Unfortunately, due to short-sighted U.S. policy, America is falling apart and behind. Congress is once again stalling on taking action to fully reauthorize the Highway Trust Fund – the lifeblood of America’s transportation infrastructure. This is unacceptable,” he continued. “We need a sustainable, long-term solution to this looming transportation funding crisis, and I urge my colleagues to act swiftly and thoughtfully to ensure our families are safer, healthier and more economically secure.”

The traditional source for transportation funding has been revenue that is collected from the 18.4 cents-per-gallon gas tax. The tax only brings in $34 billion per year, however, and the federal government typically spends $50 billion. 

Blumenauer has pushed lawmakers to increase the gas tax for the first time since 1993 to make up the difference. 

Blumenauer’s bill would increase the gas tax by 15 cents, matching a proposal that was included in the 2011 Simpson-Bowles budget reform recommendations. 

The legislation, which has been dubbed the Update, Promote and Develop America’s Transportation Essentials (UPDATE) Act, would result in drivers paying an extra 33.4 cents per gallon on their purchases, in addition to state taxes.

Lawmakers in both parties have expressed a desire to pass an extension of the transportation funding, but they have struggled to reach consensus on either the length of time or amount of money that should be involved in the legislation. 

Republicans have said, meanwhile, that a gas tax increase like Blumenauer’s proposal is a non-starter for them. 

The Department of Transportation has said that its Highway Trust Fund will run out of money in late July or early August unless Congress reaches an agreement on an extension.