House Committee to Consider Surface Transportation Bill

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee this week will consider legislation to reauthorize federal surface transportation programs. Last Friday, Chairman Peter DeFazio (D-OR) released the INVEST in America Act which would reauthorize the federal surface transportation programs for five years and provide nearly $547 billion in funding over that period, including $343 billion for roads and bridges, $109 billion for transit and $95 billion for passenger and freight rail. On Monday, June 7, the T&I Committee released a revised bill (press release here, text here) and is set to consider the legislation beginning on June 9. Committee members can file amendments by noon on Tuesday, and the committee will consider amendments during the markup. The bill includes nearly 1500 member-designated projects (earmarks), totaling $5.7 billion of the total bill.

The bill (section-by-section here, fact sheet here) is largely based on the 2020 bill of the same name, which passed the committee after a partisan, two-day markup and was combined with nearly $1 trillion in additional spending before being considered on the floor of the House and passing by a largely party-line vote last year. The package was never considered by the Senate.

A robust, bipartisan surface reauthorization that addresses the Highway Trust Fund shortfall is a top priority for NRMCA and our allies and we continue to urge Congress and the T&I Committee to formulate and pass a surface reauthorization bill in this manner. As the committee considers this legislation, NRMCA is working with partners to oppose several provisions in the bill, including an expansion of Buy America procurement requirements, increases in minimum truck insurance and other policies that could impact the ready mixed concrete industry.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee passed its bill, which is limited to the highway portions of the federal transportation programs, unanimously out of committee. That bill proposes to reauthorize the programs with $300 billion over five years. Other Senate committees, including the Banking, Commerce and Finance, have yet to act on surface reauthorization.

For more information, contact Andrew Tyrrell at atyrrell@nrmca.org.