Transportation secretary calls for long-term bill in committee hearing

Anthony Foxx

Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx met with the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on Jan. 28, calling once again for a multi-year highway bill. According to The Hill, Foxx said short-term extensions are eroding states’ ability to commit to road projects.

“Last year we sent Congress a comprehensive multiyear proposal, the Grow America Act, which included 350 pages of precise policy prescriptions and substantial funding growth, all focused on the future,” Foxx said at a committee hearing. “What America received in response was a 10-month extension with flat funding, which, while averting a catastrophe, falls short of meeting the country’s needs.

“It was not the first short-term measure, or patch, that has been passed,” he continued. “It was by my count, the 32nd in the last six years. And as a former mayor, I can tell you these short-term measures are doing to America what the state [Department of Transportation] says they’re doing in Tennessee – literally killing their will to build.”

“America is in a race. Not just against our global competitors, but against the high standards of innovation and progress our nation has shown for generations,” Foxx said. “We’re behind in that race, and when you’re behind, you have to run faster and do more than just keep pace.”

In addition to delivering comments to the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, Foxx planned to share a DOT study Feb. 2 that anticipates the trends and choices facing the U.S. transportation system over the next 30 years. According to DOT, the U.S. will grow by 70 million people over the next three decades. The growth will require 29 billion more tons of freight across the country.