Bud Shuster: “The Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects program is the core reform, a new program in this bill. It is…”

“The Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects program is the core reform, a new program in this bill. It is fundamental to this bill's redirecting us back to our national interests on these freight corridors and these major projects. Allowing a group of small projects to count toward the $100 million threshold for eligibility would actually destroy the very purpose of the program, to provide funding for large-scale projects, that is, large-scale projects that States cannot fund with their $4 million that they get. In our bill, it is very different from what the Senate bill does. The Senate bill puts it out in formula. That is not going to solve the problem. This program will solve some of those problems that States cannot fund with, again, the money that is coming from their formulas. Many bridge projects, for example, fall under this category, as do large highway expansion projects. The only exception is a 10 percent set-aside for smaller freight projects with an impact on interstate commerce. Again, the Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects program in this bill was carefully crafted and negotiated with our ranking member and the folks on the other side of the aisle, and we believe the program is properly structured. So, again, I would oppose this amendment. I reserve the balance of my time.”