Kay Bailey Hutchison: “I commend my fellow Senator, my colleague from Texas, Senator Gramm, for working with Senator Byrd in what I think is a…”

“I commend my fellow Senator, my colleague from Texas, Senator Gramm, for working with Senator Byrd in what I think is a very important accomplishment not just for my State but for all Americans. Many of us feel that our transportation infrastructure is the key to our continued economic viability in this country. Many of us have been very concerned that we have shortchanged that infrastructure by putting money in other areas. What Senator Gramm and what Senator Byrd did today was to assure that we are going to have the money that people pay in their gasoline taxes each day when they go to work, assure that it comes back in the form of a user fee to help ease the transportation congestion in our urban areas and to make it easier to access our rural areas in this country. I commend Senator Chafee and Senator Baucus for working with Senator Gramm and Senator Byrd to come out with a very fair agreement that will benefit everyone. I especially thank also Senator Domenici, the chairman of the Budget Committee, for helping to make sure that would happen without busting the budget caps because that is also our responsibility as stewards of our Nation.”