Texas House of Represenatives Meeting Notice - Jan. 18, 2008
TEXAS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING
COMMITTEE: Transportation
SUBCOMMITTEE: Planning Authorities
TIME & DATE: 10:00 AM, Wednesday, February 06, 2008
PLACE: E2.012
CHAIR: Rep. Fred Hill
The Subcommittee will meet to consider the following:
Charge #5: Examine the role of metropolitan planning authorities in state law, as well as the creation of rural planning authorities to address the planning needs outside of metropolitan planning organizations but within council of government boundaries.
Showing posts with label U.S. House Transportation Committee. Show all posts
Showing posts with label U.S. House Transportation Committee. Show all posts
Friday, January 18, 2008
Thursday, October 25, 2007
House plan would make I-80 a toll road - Republicans failed to postpone a vote. Senate prospects are uncertain.
By Paul Nussbaum - Philadelphi Inquirer Staff Writer - Jun. 22, 2007
HARRISBURG - Democratic legislators, narrowly in control of the state House, pushed yesterday for new funding for mass transit and highways, setting the stage for a battle with the Republican-controlled Senate.
Rather than lease the Pennsylvania Turnpike to a private company to raise the money, as requested by Gov. Rendell, the House plan would expand the turnpike commission's domain by making Interstate 80 a toll road.
And it would call for more local funding for transit, with authority for local governments to raise taxes to pay for it.
An initial vote on the measure was delayed until Monday, after contentious debate on the House floor that lasted until nearly 11 p.m. If it receives initial approval on Monday, the bill would still face a final vote before it could be sent to the Senate.
SEPTA officials, facing the prospect of steep fare hikes and service cuts without $100 million in additional state money, were cautiously optimistic that lawmakers were moving toward a solution. But they weren't popping any champagne corks yet.
"We're very pleased that we're seeing a lot of activity, but we're not there yet," SEPTA general manager Faye Moore said yesterday.
The House bill would provide about $102 million more in operating funds for SEPTA for the budget year that begins July 1.
The bill would fund transportation by borrowing against future toll increases on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and newly created tolls on I-80 across northern Pennsylvania. The increases and new tolls would be deferred until 2010.
Any tolls on I-80 would require approval by the Federal Highway Administration.
Tolls on the turnpike would rise by 25 percent in 2010 and about 2.5 percent a year after that. Tolls on I-80 would be set at the same per-mile rate (currently about 8 cents a mile) as those on the turnpike.
The House bill would raise an estimated $705 million in the next fiscal year, with $305 million earmarked for transit and $400 million for highways and bridges. The total funding is expected to rise to $900 million by 2010.
The amounts fall well short of $1.7 billion a year that a state panel calculated was necessary to repair highways and bridges and shore up mass-transit systems. Rendell proposed to raise $965 million a year for highways by leasing the turnpike and $760 million a year for transit by imposing a tax on oil company profits.
The House proposal, a 57-page amendment by majority whip Rep. Keith McCall (D., Carbon) to House Bill 1590, would increase funding from local governments (to 20 percent from the current 13 percent of state funding) and would authorize them to raise money by increasing the realty transfer tax, the earned income tax, the sales tax, or a parking surcharge.
The measure would also increase Philadelphia's clout on the SEPTA board of directors. The board would be increased from 15 members to 21, and counties would be allotted members on the board according to their share of local funding, up to eight members for counties that provide at least 50 percent of the local funding. Currently, Philadelphia provides 80 percent of the local operating funding to SEPTA.
Rep. Tom Killion (R., Delaware), a former SEPTA board member, criticized that change.
"We're about to shift all the power on that board to the city of Philadelphia," Killion said. He said the change would remove the incentive for the five counties to work together to run SEPTA.
And Rep. Mario Civera (R., Delaware), the ranking Republican on the appropriations committee, asserted that the change was "a Philadelphia grab. . . . Don't push this down our throats."
Rep. Dwight Evans (D., Phila.), chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, was conciliatory, telling Civera that "this is only the first step in a long negotiation. . . . We're going to work together."
With eight days left in the budget year, Evans reiterated his vow to block passage of a new budget unless the Senate approved funding for mass transit this month.
"They can't wait till fall," Evans said in an interview yesterday.
Senate Republican leaders indicated little desire to immediately tackle the funding issue. "I don't know that it can get approved in the next week, and I don't know that it's a crisis if it doesn't," said Erik Arneson, spokesman for Senate majority leader Dominic Pileggi (R., Delaware). "Sen. Pileggi's goal is to address this, but not in a way that makes members feel rushed."
Read more in the Philadelphia Inquirer
HARRISBURG - Democratic legislators, narrowly in control of the state House, pushed yesterday for new funding for mass transit and highways, setting the stage for a battle with the Republican-controlled Senate.
Rather than lease the Pennsylvania Turnpike to a private company to raise the money, as requested by Gov. Rendell, the House plan would expand the turnpike commission's domain by making Interstate 80 a toll road.
And it would call for more local funding for transit, with authority for local governments to raise taxes to pay for it.
An initial vote on the measure was delayed until Monday, after contentious debate on the House floor that lasted until nearly 11 p.m. If it receives initial approval on Monday, the bill would still face a final vote before it could be sent to the Senate.
SEPTA officials, facing the prospect of steep fare hikes and service cuts without $100 million in additional state money, were cautiously optimistic that lawmakers were moving toward a solution. But they weren't popping any champagne corks yet.
"We're very pleased that we're seeing a lot of activity, but we're not there yet," SEPTA general manager Faye Moore said yesterday.
The House bill would provide about $102 million more in operating funds for SEPTA for the budget year that begins July 1.
The bill would fund transportation by borrowing against future toll increases on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and newly created tolls on I-80 across northern Pennsylvania. The increases and new tolls would be deferred until 2010.
Any tolls on I-80 would require approval by the Federal Highway Administration.
Tolls on the turnpike would rise by 25 percent in 2010 and about 2.5 percent a year after that. Tolls on I-80 would be set at the same per-mile rate (currently about 8 cents a mile) as those on the turnpike.
The House bill would raise an estimated $705 million in the next fiscal year, with $305 million earmarked for transit and $400 million for highways and bridges. The total funding is expected to rise to $900 million by 2010.
The amounts fall well short of $1.7 billion a year that a state panel calculated was necessary to repair highways and bridges and shore up mass-transit systems. Rendell proposed to raise $965 million a year for highways by leasing the turnpike and $760 million a year for transit by imposing a tax on oil company profits.
The House proposal, a 57-page amendment by majority whip Rep. Keith McCall (D., Carbon) to House Bill 1590, would increase funding from local governments (to 20 percent from the current 13 percent of state funding) and would authorize them to raise money by increasing the realty transfer tax, the earned income tax, the sales tax, or a parking surcharge.
The measure would also increase Philadelphia's clout on the SEPTA board of directors. The board would be increased from 15 members to 21, and counties would be allotted members on the board according to their share of local funding, up to eight members for counties that provide at least 50 percent of the local funding. Currently, Philadelphia provides 80 percent of the local operating funding to SEPTA.
Rep. Tom Killion (R., Delaware), a former SEPTA board member, criticized that change.
"We're about to shift all the power on that board to the city of Philadelphia," Killion said. He said the change would remove the incentive for the five counties to work together to run SEPTA.
And Rep. Mario Civera (R., Delaware), the ranking Republican on the appropriations committee, asserted that the change was "a Philadelphia grab. . . . Don't push this down our throats."
Rep. Dwight Evans (D., Phila.), chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, was conciliatory, telling Civera that "this is only the first step in a long negotiation. . . . We're going to work together."
With eight days left in the budget year, Evans reiterated his vow to block passage of a new budget unless the Senate approved funding for mass transit this month.
"They can't wait till fall," Evans said in an interview yesterday.
Senate Republican leaders indicated little desire to immediately tackle the funding issue. "I don't know that it can get approved in the next week, and I don't know that it's a crisis if it doesn't," said Erik Arneson, spokesman for Senate majority leader Dominic Pileggi (R., Delaware). "Sen. Pileggi's goal is to address this, but not in a way that makes members feel rushed."
Read more in the Philadelphia Inquirer
Friday, August 10, 2007
Higher Federal gas tax to fix bridges proposed
By FREDERIC J. FROMMER - Associated Press Writer - Wed Aug 8, 2007
WASHINGTON - The chairman of the House Transportation Committee proposed a 5-cent increase in the federal gasoline tax to establish a new trust fund for repairing or replacing structurally deficient highway bridges.
However, the proposal by Rep. Jim Oberstar, D-Minn., in the wake of last week's bridge collapse in Minneapolis that killed five people was immediately rebuffed by his committee's senior Republican.
Oberstar said the trust fund would be modeled on the federal Highway Trust Fund, which pays for building and repairing roads and bridges through federal excise tax on gasoline that is now 18.3 cents a gallon. Revenue from the nickel increase — about $25 billion over three years, according to the congressman — could not be used for any other purpose than bridges.
He said he hoped the idea might win support from President Bush, who vehemently opposed a 5-cent increase in gasoline taxes two years ago and vowed to veto it.
"Governor (Tim) Pawlenty has had a conversion, and I expect the president will as well," Oberstar said. "At least we'll give him that opportunity. If you're not prepared to invest another five cents in bridge reconstruction and road reconstruction, then God help you."
Last week, the Minnesota governor said he is willing to reverse his long-standing opposition to a state gas tax increase.
The federal Transportation Department did not immediately return phone and e-mail messages seeking comment on the proposal.
Florida Rep. John Mica, the top Republican on the committee Oberstar chairs, panned the idea, calling it a "Band-Aid approach to a critical national transportation infrastructure problem."
"A knee-jerk reaction to the critical problem facing our transportation and infrastructure systems will only result in a continued failure to address the deteriorating conditions of our highways, ports, airports, and rail systems," Mica said in a statement. "It's like owning an 80-year old house that has serious problems with the plumbing, the heating, the foundation, and a leaking roof, and saying you're going to fix the driveway."
He called instead for the development of a national strategic transportation plan.
Oberstar's proposal would require the Transportation Department to come up with a formula for distributing funds based on public safety and need. Neither the president nor members of Congress could "earmark" specific projects to get money.
Oberstar said he had a commitment from House Democratic leaders "to bring this bill to the House floor as quickly as we can report it from committee" when Congress returns in September.
Speaking Wednesday in Boston, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., pledged to support legislative efforts to repair the nation's aging bridges, roads and schools.
"Our sadness must at least be met with a commitment to address our infrastructure shortcomings. It's a huge task," Pelosi told the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Across the country, more than 70,000 bridges are rated structurally deficient, including the bridge that collapsed in Minneapolis, according to the Transportation Department. The American Society of Civil Engineers says repairing them all would require spending at least $9.4 billion a year for 20 years.
Associated Press writers Ken Maguire in Boston and Steve Karnowski in Minneapolis contributed to this report.
Read more
WASHINGTON - The chairman of the House Transportation Committee proposed a 5-cent increase in the federal gasoline tax to establish a new trust fund for repairing or replacing structurally deficient highway bridges.
However, the proposal by Rep. Jim Oberstar, D-Minn., in the wake of last week's bridge collapse in Minneapolis that killed five people was immediately rebuffed by his committee's senior Republican.
Oberstar said the trust fund would be modeled on the federal Highway Trust Fund, which pays for building and repairing roads and bridges through federal excise tax on gasoline that is now 18.3 cents a gallon. Revenue from the nickel increase — about $25 billion over three years, according to the congressman — could not be used for any other purpose than bridges.
He said he hoped the idea might win support from President Bush, who vehemently opposed a 5-cent increase in gasoline taxes two years ago and vowed to veto it.
"Governor (Tim) Pawlenty has had a conversion, and I expect the president will as well," Oberstar said. "At least we'll give him that opportunity. If you're not prepared to invest another five cents in bridge reconstruction and road reconstruction, then God help you."
Last week, the Minnesota governor said he is willing to reverse his long-standing opposition to a state gas tax increase.
The federal Transportation Department did not immediately return phone and e-mail messages seeking comment on the proposal.
Florida Rep. John Mica, the top Republican on the committee Oberstar chairs, panned the idea, calling it a "Band-Aid approach to a critical national transportation infrastructure problem."
"A knee-jerk reaction to the critical problem facing our transportation and infrastructure systems will only result in a continued failure to address the deteriorating conditions of our highways, ports, airports, and rail systems," Mica said in a statement. "It's like owning an 80-year old house that has serious problems with the plumbing, the heating, the foundation, and a leaking roof, and saying you're going to fix the driveway."
He called instead for the development of a national strategic transportation plan.
Oberstar's proposal would require the Transportation Department to come up with a formula for distributing funds based on public safety and need. Neither the president nor members of Congress could "earmark" specific projects to get money.
Oberstar said he had a commitment from House Democratic leaders "to bring this bill to the House floor as quickly as we can report it from committee" when Congress returns in September.
Speaking Wednesday in Boston, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., pledged to support legislative efforts to repair the nation's aging bridges, roads and schools.
"Our sadness must at least be met with a commitment to address our infrastructure shortcomings. It's a huge task," Pelosi told the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Across the country, more than 70,000 bridges are rated structurally deficient, including the bridge that collapsed in Minneapolis, according to the Transportation Department. The American Society of Civil Engineers says repairing them all would require spending at least $9.4 billion a year for 20 years.
Associated Press writers Ken Maguire in Boston and Steve Karnowski in Minneapolis contributed to this report.
Read more
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