REMARKS FOR
THE HONORABLE NORMAN Y. MINETA
SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION
SACRAMENTO METRO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE “CAPITOL TO CAPITOL” TRIP HOSTED BY CONGRESSMAN JOHN DOOLITTLE
WASHINGTON, D.C.
APRIL 22, 2002
Good afternoon, and thank you, Congressman Doolittle, for that very warm welcome. I appreciate the opportunity to talk about transportation in America, and in Sacramento.
The economic activity of the Sacramento region is impressive. At $58.1 billion, the Sacramento area would rank 79 out of 172 globally if it were a nation.
So, we, at the federal level, understand the importance of the Sacramento region on our nation’s economic stability and growth, and transportation plays an important role in making sure your region continues to thrive.
After the horrible attack on our nation on September 11th, we all know that nothing is the same. Yet we must act “normal.”
That’s what the Bush Administration’s “New Normalcy” is all about, and we are heading toward it at full speed.
Sometimes it feels like we are being asked to change our spark plugs while driving toward the future at 60 miles per hour.
Since September 11th, we at the Department of Transportation have had to shift our focal point on the horizon. We have had to clear new paths to get there. It hasn’t been easy.
Let me explain how far we have come since September 11th, and where we are headed.
The first thing that we, in the Bush Administration, did was strengthen our resolve to do everything possible to safeguard against future terrorist attacks.
It was important to show the American public that we were, and are, serious about preserving our freedoms — including the freedom to move freely throughout this nation and beyond.
Only days after the September 11th attacks, I established a National Infrastructure Security Committee, or NISC, within the DOT to review security throughout the national transportation system. NISC is made up of six Direct Action Groups that each focus on a different mode of transportation.
Soon after that, we worked with Congress to pass the airline industry stabilization plan, a bill that quickly earmarked $15 billion for the airline industry so they could stay in business, and thus avoid yet another blow to the American economy.
Next, lawmakers passed the Aviation and Transportation Security Act of 2001, establishing the Transportation Security Administration, or the TSA, within the Department of Transportation.
This agency, which is the largest created from scratch since World War II, is charged with keeping all forms of U.S. transportation safe and secure. That means we are watching our highways, railways, waterways, and runways.
It is headed by Under Secretary John W. Magaw, former director of both the Secret Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
Our mantra is to provide world-class security, and world-class customer service.
To that end, we are developing a screening process that systematically
prohibits weapons or other banned materials in airport sterile zones without
requiring a wait of longer than 10 minutes at any security checkpoint in the
United States.
No weapons, no waiting. That’s
our goal.
You may think we are spending an awful lot of time on aviation. Well, you’re right. With all of the strict deadlines set by Congress to take over aviation security, we have had to concentrate a lot of resources there.
However, we have not forgotten that 75 to 80 percent of all travel occurs on our nation’s highways. Nor have we forgotten our ports, which host both cargo and cruise ships.
I know that these are the issues of direct importance to you in the Sacramento area where you are at a crossroads with your transportation planning.
One recent private sector study indicated that nearly one-fourth of the major roads in the nation’s largest areas have significant deterioration and need repair or reconstruction. Sacramento had one of the highest percentages of roads shown to be in poor condition.
We, at the Department of Transportation, are continuing our work to develop proposals for the reauthorization of the surface and air transportation acts known as TEA-21 and AIR-21, which will address these issues directly facing your communities.
These and other related bills are of particular importance to the Sacramento region, which expects to add 1 million people in the next 20 years.
It is imperative that the region meets federal clean air requirements today, in order to fund important transportation infrastructure needed to serve the region and its exploding population in the future.
The good news is that civic and business leaders have developed a strategy to reduce ozone emissions by two tons per day by 2002, and five tons per day by 2005. The Sacramento Emergency Clean Air & Transportation Program combines $70 million in state and local funds to underwrite the cost of cleaner burning technologies in local diesel fleets.
We in the Bush Administration applaud your local efforts and look forward to working with you on these issues as we take our next steps.
DOT also plays an important role in new laws that have been passed by Congress pertaining to security in not only air transportation, but ground and water.
For example, we are the agency responsible for handing out the $93 million in Port Security grants. We are also the agency writing the rules and regulations for that part of the NAFTA agreement that will allow Mexican commercial trucks and regular route buses greater access to our country.
So, you can see that we are very busy making our new task of world-class security with world-class customer service seem like it’s easy, despite all of the moving parts.
Thank you for allowing me this opportunity to talk to you this morning.
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