Senate Floor Statement on H.R. 3 Transportation Reauthorization Conference Report

For over two years Congress has been trying to reauthorize the federal surface transportation and safety programs that to keep commerce and traffic flowing smoothly across our nation. The reauthorization bill is long overdue and I am pleased Congress will finally complete this process today. Funding for transportation infrastructure such as roads, bridges and border crossings is an important investment that increases the mobility of people and goods, enhances economic competitiveness, reduces traffic congestion, and improves air quality.

Improvements in transportation infrastructure are critical to all of our states, and the federal highway money that states receive is critical for funding them. In addition, few federal investments have as large and immediate an impact on job creation and economic growth as transportation infrastructure. The Department of Transportation estimates that every $1 billion in new federal investment creates more than 47,500 jobs.

Unfortunately, the formula that distributes federal highway funds to states is antiquated and inequitable and has discriminated against Michigan and other states for 50 years since the interstate system was first legislated. Historically, about 20 states, including Michigan, have been “donor” states, sending more gas tax dollars to the Highway Trust Fund in Washington than are returned in transportation infrastructure spending. The remaining 30 states, known as “donee” states, have received more transportation funding than they paid into the Highway Trust Fund.

This unfair practice began in 1956 when small states and large Western states banded together to develop a formula for distributing federal highway dollars that advantaged themselves to the disadvantage of the remaining states. Once that formula was in place, they have tenaciously defended it.

At the beginning, there was some legitimacy to the concept that large, low-population, and predominately Western states needed more funding than they contributed to the system. It was necessary in order to build a national interstate highway system. However, with the national interstate system completed, the formulas used to determine how much a state will receive from the Highway Trust are simply unfair. Each time the highway bill has been reauthorized, I, along with my colleagues from other donor states, have fought to correct this inequity in highway funding. Over the years, through these battles, some progress has been made. For instance, in 1978, Michigan was getting around 75 cents back on our federal gas tax dollar. The 1991 bill brought us up to approximately 80 cents per dollar, and the 1998 bill guaranteed a 90.5-cent minimum return for each state. This bill will bring us to 92 cents per dollar by fiscal year 2008.

During the past two years, in its effort to reauthorize TEA-21, the Senate has twice passed bills that would have been better for Michigan and other donor states in terms of rate of return than is today’s Conference Report. The first Senate-passed bill died in conference due to President Bush’s veto threat and his unwillingness to accept the funding levels in either the House or Senate bill. This year’s Senate-passed bill was modified in the conference with the House of Representatives.

The bill before us has less overall funding than either of the previous Senate passed bills and does not go as far as it should go in closing the funding equity gap for donor states. Although I am disappointed we did not do as well as we proved could be done in the two Senate bills, this Conference Report still allows Michigan to make a little progress toward achieving equity. Michigan will go from a current 90.5 percent minimum rate of return on its gas-tax contributions to the Highway Trust Fund to 91.5 percent in fiscal year 2007 and to 92 percent in fiscal years 2008 and 2009.

This bill will provide more than $1.123 billion annually to fund transportation projects in Michigan, $239 million more per year than the prior six year highway bill, and will create 61,500 new jobs across the State.

Furthermore, the bill provides funding for a number of critical highway related projects in Michigan. I am delighted to have helped to secure significant additional funding for Michigan roads and highway related projects which will help make up for the fact that we are a donor state.

For example, the bill provides $40.8 million to reconstruct and widen I-94 in Kalamazoo. The bill also provides $29 million for the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy to establish a West Riverfront walkway and greenway along the Detroit River from Riverfront Towers to the Ambassador Bridge. It provides $12 million for the construction of a new at-grade crossing and I-75 interchange in Gaylord to reconnect Milbocker and McCoy Roads and a new overpass to reconnect Van Tyle to South Wisconsin Road. It also provides $13.28 million to repave a portion of H-53 in Alger County.

Mr. President, the legislation we will pass today represents some progress in the ongoing fight for equity for donor states. I will continue to fight in the future, as I have in the past, until we are able to achieve full equity for Michigan. I recognize, however, that we have succeeded in reducing the inequity a little more in each reauthorization bill, and we do so in this bill as well. I therefore will support this bill.