James Oberstar: “when Congress passed SAFETEA-LU--the legislation that reauthorizes the Federal surface transportation programs--in 2005…”

“when Congress passed SAFETEA-LU--the legislation that reauthorizes the Federal surface transportation programs--in 2005, it recognized the need to significantly increase Federal investment for highway, highway safety, and transit programs. In fact, the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users, SAFETEA-LU, increased the overall investment in surface transportation programs by more than 40 percent, with a significant part of that increase guaranteed to take effect in fiscal year 2007. Earlier this year, the House passed H.R. 5576, the Transportation, Treasury, and Housing and Urban Development, TTHUD, appropriations bill, which meets SAFETEA-LU's funding guarantees. It provides an increase of $3.4 billion for the Federal-aid highway programs and an additional $474 million for the transit programs over the fiscal year 2006 SAFETEA-LU funding levels. It is now more than 2 months since the start of fiscal year 2007, and the Republican-led Congress has not enacted the TTHUD appropriations bill. Instead, H.J. Res. 102 provides funding for the highway, highway safety, and transit programs through February 15, 2007. The resolution funds these programs at the fiscal year 2006 level. Thus, all of the highway and transit investment increases guaranteed by SAFETEA-LU are put on hold.”