James Oberstar: “Mr. Speaker, a close read of this conference report provides for transportation infrastructure programs, little more…”

“Mr. Speaker, a close read of this conference report provides for transportation infrastructure programs, little more than the status quo, $41.7 billion for the coming fiscal year. If that is what the majority is presenting to us, this report does nothing to begin to address the needs of highway and transit systems at a time when we have huge unmet safety and security needs, congestion is crippling our city, the economy has lost 2.5 million jobs. On a closer reading, though, there is a curious anomaly in the budget resolution's contingency procedure for surface transportation. Section 411 of this conference report provides contract authority for TEA-21 reauthorization for each of fiscal years 2004 through 2009. For amounts above the levels specified for those years, Congress must pass legislation to increase receipts to the highway trust fund such as increasing the purchasing power of the user fee. If we pass such a highway user fee increase, the Committee on the Budget chairman, according to the language I have read, may increase the budget allocation to our committee. However, under the conference report before us, the chairman can increase that allocation only for years 2004 through 2008. No increase for 2009, even if we increase the user fee to provide for that additional infrastructure investment. That means you get no benefit from the increase in funding that our committee might enact.”