Obama will sign the bill, said White House spokesman Josh Earnest, who on Wednesday called the measure a “real step forward”.
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The bill, passed 83-16 by the Senate Thursday night, also revives the U.S. Export-Import Bank, whose charter lawmakers had allowed to expire on June 30. And with $50 million in new funding each of the next five years, some back-burner but nonetheless needed projects will also see some progress.
The FAST Act, which will provide approximately $300 billion over five years, continues to distribute more than 90 percent of federal highway funding to State DOTs through formulas and maintains the current Federal-aid Highway program structure.
Gibson said key provisions benefiting the steel industry include: accelerated project delivery via permit streamlining; the promotion of public-private partnerships; a national freight program aimed at reducing congestion; innovative funding for bridge construction; and, a review of cost-saving bridge design and construction techniques to include lifecycle costs.
The North Dakota Department of Transportation is “very excited” about the bill, having operated since 2005 on short-term funding extensions and continuing resolutions passed by Congress, said Steve Salwei, transportation programs director.
Boozman added, “For the first time in ten years, we have a long-term highway bill that will allow Arkansas and other states to provide certainty for important infrastructure improvements, which are so vital to our economic well-being. Instead, they should raise the gas tax or find another permanent financing source if they want to spend more”. The bill now awaits President Obama’s signature. The need for infrastructure improvements has become a politically prickly issue in IN of late, too, and will likely shape discussions in the next two legislative sessions and in the 2016 governor’s race.
The main revenue stream for transportation comes from the trust fund, which is made up mostly of the 18.4-cents-a-gallon gasoline tax. “At the same time, the bill would increase highway contract authority by $25 billion above the baseline over the next five years, or almost $65 billion if that amount of spending were extended out for ten years”. This is why I fought to ensure the FAST Act included key provisions that improve not only the efficiency but the safety of our roads.
Democratic Sens. Tom Carper (Del.) and Elizabeth Warren (MA) and 14 Republicans, including GOP presidential candidates Sens. When Congress created the Interstate Highway System in 1956, all federal money was distributed to the states using formulas.
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The absurdity du jour is a 100-year-old program the Federal Reserve used to attract member banks: The 6 percent, tax-free dividend paid to its members and primary dealers on the capital reserves the Fed required.
