[Senate Hearing 118-158]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 118-158
HEARING ON IMPLEMENTATION OF THE
INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT
AND JOBS ACT AND THE INFLATION
REDUCTION ACT BY THE FEDERAL
HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION
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HEARING
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON
ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
__________
JUNE 14, 2023
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Printed for the use of the Committee on Environment and Public Works
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.govinfo.gov
__________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
62-246 WASHINGTON : 2025
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COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware, Chairman
SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO, West Virginia, Ranking Member
BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland KEVIN CRAMER, North Dakota
BERNARD SANDERS, Vermont CYNTHIA M. LUMMIS, Wyoming
SHELDON WHITEHOUSE, Rhode Island MARKWAYNE MULLIN, Oklahoma
JEFF MERKLEY, Oregon PETE RICKETTS, Nebraska
EDWARD J. MARKEY, Massachusetts JOHN BOOZMAN, Arkansas
DEBBIE STABENOW, Michigan ROGER WICKER, Mississippi
MARK KELLY, Arizona DAN SULLIVAN, Alaska
ALEX PADILLA, California LINDSEY O. GRAHAM, South Carolina
JOHN FETTERMAN, Pennsylvania
Courtney Taylor, Democratic Staff Director
Adam Tomlinson, Republican Staff Director
C O N T E N T S
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Page
JUNE 14, 2023
OPENING STATEMENTS
Carper, Hon. Thomas R., U.S. Senator from the State of Delaware.. 1
Capito, Hon. Shelley Moore, U.S. Senator from the State of West
Virginia....................................................... 4
WITNESS
Bhatt, Hon. Shailen, Administrator, Federal Highway
Administration, Department of Transportation................... 7
Prepared statement........................................... 9
Responses to additional questions from:
Senator Carper........................................... 19
Senator Sanders.......................................... 23
Senator Padilla.......................................... 23
Senator Fetterman........................................ 25
Senator Ricketts......................................... 29
ADDITIONAL MATERIAL
Letter to Senator Carper and Senator Capito from:
Advocates for Highway & Auto Safety.......................... 56
America's Cement Manufacturers............................... 63
HEARING ON IMPLEMENTATION OF THE
INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT
AND JOBS ACT AND THE INFLATION
REDUCTION ACT BY THE FEDERAL
HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION
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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2023
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Environment and Public Works,
Washington, DC.
The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:10 a.m. in
room 406, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Thomas R. Carper
(chairman of the committee) presiding.
Present: Senators Carper, Capito, Cardin, Whitehouse,
Merkley, Markey, Kelly, Fetterman, Cramer, Lummis, Sullivan,
Ricketts.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. THOMAS R. CARPER,
U. S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF DELAWARE
Senator Carper. With that, I am pleased to call this
hearing to order. Welcome to all of our witnesses, welcome to
our guests, especially thanks to Senator Capito and her
colleagues for being here for this important hearing.
Today we are here to discuss the Federal Highway
Administration's implementation of the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act. I am
enormously proud, I know Senator Capito is as well, of the work
that this committee did, literally providing the foundation for
the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
People say to me, and I am sure they say to you, Senator
Capito, when you travel back to West Virginia or around the
Country, why can't you guys and gals just work together and get
stuff done. As it turns out, in this committee, that is what we
do. We reported out our parts of the Bipartisan Infrastructure
legislation, unanimously, 20 to zip. Ten Democrats, ten
Republicans. We are proud to have helped lay the foundation for
what has turned out to be one of the biggest investments in the
Nation's infrastructure ever and it started right here in this
room.
I think we have made some history, and hopefully we will
continue to make that history going forward.
Before we begin, I want to take just a moment to
acknowledge the disaster that occurred this past weekend just
north of Philadelphia. My wife and I live about five miles from
the Pennsylvania line, so this was too close to home. There is
a lot of work that has been going on, and I know our witness
today, Shailen, has been up there for quite a time. We will
hear a little bit about that as well.
On Sunday, a tanker truck carrying 8,500 gallons of
gasoline caught fire on the off-ramp causing an overpass on I-
95 literally to collapse as you have probably all seen on
television. Administrator Bhatt has already been to the site of
the crash a couple of times. He and his team are working to
support State officials there as they restore mobility on this
critical corridor for our Nation.
I-95 is really like our Nation's highway. It goes all the
way from Maine all the way down to Florida. The amount of
traffic on that which goes through my State is just incredible.
I want to thank our Administrator and the rest of his team
at the Federal Highway Administration for the important work
they are doing. We appreciate very much your being with us
today.
It has been a little more than 2 years since this committee
unanimously marked up the highway bill that would go on to
serve as the foundation for the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
When we did, we noted that it included historic funding for our
Nation's highway programs. I also noted that it included the
first-ever climate title in a bill of that nature.
In our highway bill, we created the Promoting Resilient
Operations for Transformative, Efficient, and Cost-Saving
Transportation, otherwise known as the PROTECT, program. We did
so with the intent of improving the resilience of our
transportation systems and reducing our vulnerability to
extreme weather.
We have all heard the old saying that an ounce of
prevention is worth a pound of cure. That is certainly the case
with investments in resilience. Building protective features
and natural infrastructure helps keep transportation assets
able to withstand disasters for years. The earlier those
protections are in place, the greater the benefit will be.
With that in mind, I am pleased that the Federal Highway
Administration is now accepting applications for the first
round of PROTECT grants. It is my hope that the Federal Highway
Administration works quickly to award these program funds and
begins to improve the resilience of communities nationwide.
Our bill also created dedicated programs to develop
electric vehicle or EV charging networks across our Country. It
also included a 70 percent increase in funding for programs to
build safe, accessible pedestrian and bicycle pathways across
our Country.
In addition, our surface transportation bill authorized the
Reconnecting Communities program. This was the first-ever
Federal program to address the safety and pollution impacts of
highways that have divided and hurt neighborhoods in many
places across our Country.
Importantly, not only did our highway bill focus on the
critical issues of climate, safety, and equity, but it did so
in a lasting, bipartisan way. My colleagues have heard me say,
and Shailen a million times, bipartisan solutions are lasting
solutions. We are very proud that that is the approach we took
with the Bipartisan Infrastructure bill.
During that markup 2 years ago, I also noted that the
Infrastructure Bill alone was not enough to address climate
change. Once we passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we
got to work on legislation that eventually became the Inflation
Reduction Act.
The Inflation Reduction Act authorized several new programs
under the purview of the Federal Highway Administration. This
included a program to reduce the industrial emissions from
construction materials, as well as funding to facilitate
efficient environmental review and permitting times. The
Inflation Reduction Act also provided funds to mitigate air,
noise, and water pollution and other impacts of highway
infrastructure on disadvantaged communities.
Together, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the
Inflation Reduction Act represent the most significant
investment in clean energy and transportation infrastructure,
as well as equity and climate resilience in our Nation's
history. Still, there is no shortage of work that remains to be
done. There are key questions that the Federal Highway
Administration must address around implementation, regulation,
and guidance.
That is why I am delighted to welcome our friend, not just
from Delaware, but a friend who has actually been Secretary of
Transportation in Delaware and Colorado, he has worked with
USDOT in any number of responsible positions to prepare him for
this day. This is his first time before our committee since the
Senate confirmed his nomination to be Administrator of the
Federal Highway Administration by a voice vote in December
2022. We look forward to hearing your testimony today about the
extensive work that you have led in the past 6 months or so.
As I noted, Congress provided the Federal Highway
Administration with historic funding and the authorities
necessary to revitalize highways across our Country. The agency
must also use its regulatory authority to address ongoing
needs.
One such need for regulation is to help reduce emissions
from our transportation sector, which accounts for nearly 30
percent of our Nation's greenhouse gas emissions, the largest
single source in our economy. It is my recollection 30 percent
of our emissions come from cars, the vehicles, trucks that we
drive. Cars are mobile sources. Another 25 percent comes from
our power plants across the Country, and another roughly 25
percent comes from our manufacturing base, the manufacturing
operations. The biggest of those three is our roads, highways
and bridges.
Last July, the Federal Highway Administration proposed a
rule that would require States and metropolitan areas to
measure their performance on greenhouse gas emissions and set
targets to reduce those emissions. Once finalized, this will be
a critical tool to steer infrastructure investments toward
better climate outcomes. I hope that the agency will move
quickly to finalize that rule.
Finally, I would like to emphasize the importance of
improving safety. Last year, nearly 43,000 people tragically
lost their lives on our Nation's roads, the highest number in
16 years. I will say that again. Last year, nearly 43,000
people tragically lost their lives on our Nation's roads, the
highest number in 16 years.
The U.S. Department of Transportation has taken an
important step toward this goal by releasing its National
Roadway Safety Strategy, which set a goal of zero fatalities
for U.S. roads for the first time. Zero for the first time.
Still, there is more work that the Federal Highway
Administration can and should be doing to prioritize safety.
That includes working with states and metropolitan areas to
plan streets that are safer for all users and choosing highway
designs and roadway designs that do not encourage speeding and
other unsafe behaviors.
With that, we look forward to hearing about the work that
Administrator Bhatt has done and will continue to do to advance
these priorities.
Before that, I want to turn to our Ranking Member, Senator
Capito, whose leadership was critical to the passage of the
infrastructure programs we are discussing today. Senator
Capito, you are recognized for as long as you wish to speak.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO,
U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF WEST VIRGINIA
Senator Capito. Thank you, Chairman Carper, for calling
today's hearing, and your ongoing willingness to conduct
oversight on the IIJA and the Inflation Reduction Act.
Administrator Bhatt, it is very good to see you. I know
that you have been extremely busy here over the last several
days. Since your confirmation you have maintained a very open
line of communication with me and my staff. I want to express
our appreciation for doing that.
I also want to thank your hardworking staff at the agency.
I know they are working on a lot of different issues.
I would also like to acknowledge the tragic incident on I-
95 in Philadelphia. The pictures are just overwhelming and I
know you have been on the ground. I appreciate the
responsiveness of Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in
providing assistance to the State of Pennsylvania. I know the
investigation is underway and Congress will be provided more
information when it is available.
I am very proud that this Committee, as the chairman said,
developed the legislation that served as the foundation of the
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), and we did
so together, bipartisan through regular order. I was proud to
manage the bill on the floor with the chairman, and to attend
the signing ceremony at the White House.
Unfortunately, our bipartisan product was jeopardized, this
was before you got there, by FHWA's December 2021 policy
memorandum. I want to thank you, Administrator Bhatt, for
issuing a substantially revised policy memorandum that
superseded the original one. I appreciate that you recognized
the original memorandum diminished the bipartisan
accomplishments of this Committee and contradicted the
statutory text and clear intent of Congress.
When the IIJA was signed into law, we promised the American
people that the legislation would deliver results by improving
our Nation's core transportation infrastructure, and we are
starting to see real tangible benefits of that investment. In
negotiating the legislation, I prioritized the inclusion of a
robust project delivery and process improvement title that
included the codification of the One Federal Decision policy
for surface transportation projects.
I look forward to receiving an update from you today on how
the agency is implementing those provisions and others in the
IIJA. Proper implementation of the law is the only way to see
the full benefits of the IIJA.
Now on to the inaptly named Inflation Reduction Act, which
has not, and will not, reduce inflation. Following passage of
the IIJA, the Administration embarked on a partisan exercise to
pass what I believe are misguided policies through the budget
reconciliation process.
That effort began with the introduction of the so-called
Build Back Better legislation in 2021, and culminated with
President Biden signing the IRA into law in August 2022. The
original version of the reconciliation legislation included a
provision that would have directed FHWA to establish a
greenhouse gas emissions performance measure and associated
targets.
I challenged that provision as violating the Byrd Rule of
the Congressional Budget Act, and that provision was stripped
from the legislation. That removal of language was the second
time since I became Ranking Member of this committee that we
have dealt with this policy. That was the second time that
Congress directly rejected FHWA the authority to establish a
greenhouse gas performance measure and associated targets.
Providing this authority to FHWA was also debated, and
ultimately left out of the bipartisan IIJA. The Biden
Administration, through your agency, is now attempting, and the
chairman just talked about this, to impose a greenhouse gas
emissions performance measure and associated targets on State
departments of transportation and metropolitan planning
organizations, without any authority from Congress. This
rulemaking feels very similar to the December 2021 policy
memorandum. Yet again, this Administration is trying to
implement partisan policies they wish had been included the
IIJA and the IRA through agency action.
I am hopeful that under your leadership this rulemaking for
a greenhouse gas emissions performance measure and associated
targets will not move forward.
On a related note, I also want to express my concern with a
proposal that the President's Fiscal Year 2024 budget request
has. The budget request included legislative language that
would repurpose $60 million in unobligated contract authority
from the TIFIA program to the Active Transportation
Infrastructure Investment Program. This is in the weeds but I
know you understand what I am talking about. The IIJA did not
provide contract authority for that program. It received an
authorization but it is subject to appropriations.
This committee determines what programs receive contract
authority and how much, not the Department. I hope this is not
something that your agency plans to pursue, as once again, the
committee has already made a decision here.
Finally, I want to raise an issue that is not directly
related to either of the laws that we are discussing today, but
may have a significant impact on how State DOTs manage their
programs and their ability to move forward. I am referring to
the $3.5 billion discrepancy in contract authority between the
two fiscal management systems, known as Fiscal Management
Information System (FMIS) and Delphi. I appreciate that you
brought this issue to my attention in January and look forward
to receiving an update from you on how the Department of
Transportation (DOT) plans to resolve this discrepancy.
In summary, the topics of our hearing today starkly
contrast the different outcomes in quality and durability. We
get great quality and durability when the Senate pursues
bipartisan legislation through regular order We compare that to
a partisan legislation through budget reconciliation process
that I believe falls short.
Nevertheless, oversight of your implementation of these two
laws is a critical function of this committee.
I would like to take one moment to say farewell to a much
beloved and incredible member of our staff over here, the
Republican staff at The Senate Environment and Public Works
Committee (EPW). Lauren Baker will be leaving us. I do not know
if it is today or tomorrow but way, way too soon. She really
helped to shepherd the IIJA through our committee. She is an
incredible resource. I know she will be successful where she
goes.
Lauren, we will miss her and I know your department will
miss her as well because of the great give and take that we
have been able to have with her and through your department.
Thank you for letting me bid Lauren a fond farewell.
Senator Carper. Lauren, thank you for your work. One of the
joys of working on this committee is working with our
colleagues on the other side of the aisle. It is not just
member to member, but staff as well. To Adam and Courtney and
members of our respective staffs, thank you for that great
spirit. You have heard of the trickle-down theory. When the
leaders of a committee like this work together and reflect that
kind of behavior, the staff picks up on it as well. It is a
good thing for us.
Senator Capito. Lauren, stand up.
[Applause.]
Senator Carper. Do you know where Lauren is going to go
next?
Senator Capito. Private sector.
Senator Carper. Okay. Before I turn it over to Shailen
Bhatt for his testimony, I would note, when driving to the
train station in Delaware this morning, I was listening to
National Public Radio (NPR) news. They were giving some
updates. They announced that with respect to the Inflation
Reduction Act (IRA), people say, well, the IRA does not really
help reduce inflation, but at the end of the day, on the
morning news this morning we just learned that inflation
continues to actually drop. I think the annualized number is
down to 4 percent.
Last job creation number, the report out of the Department
of Labor a few weeks ago, new jobs, 340,000 new jobs in the
last month and our unemployment rate for our Country is still
holding down around 3.5 percent, which is a pretty darned good
number. It is not perfect, there are still things we can do
better. It is not bad, where I come from, that is not bad.
Thank you, Senator Capito. We will now hear from our
witness, Shailen Bhatt. Shailen pronounces his name Bhatt, but
a lot of us in Delaware pronounce it Bhatt. He will answer to
either one.
He is the Administrator of the Federal Highway
Administration and was sworn into his current role on January
13th, 2023, after being unanimously confirmed by the Senate on
December 8th of last year. As Administrator, Mr. Bhatt oversees
an agency with more than 2,700 employees, which includes staff
who work in all 50 States, U.S. territories as well, and the
District of Columbia, to carry out Federal Highway programs.
Welcome, Shailen. You may now proceed with your testimony.
STATEMENT OF HON. SHAILEN BHATT, ADMINISTRATOR, FEDERAL HIGHWAY
ADMINISTRATION
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Chairman Carper and Ranking Member
Capito, and members of the committee. Thank you for the
opportunity to appear before you today to discuss
implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act,
otherwise known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and the
Inflation Reduction Act.
These historic investments in our Nation's infrastructure
add new opportunities to build a clean energy economy that
creates good jobs and lowers costs for working families. When I
appeared before this committee for my confirmation hearing, I
noted that FHWA staff have been working tirelessly. I have hit
the ground running since being confirmed. The dedication of
FHWA staff in carrying out these laws and getting real results
for the American public is inspiring.
I have always said that a transportation agency exists for
two reasons, to save lives and to make people's lives better.
This past Monday, I joined members of the Pennsylvania
congressional delegation as well as the Pennsylvania Department
of Transportation secretary in touring the site of the partial
collapse in Philadelphia that occurred on Interstate 95
involving a truck fire which resulted in the tragic loss of
life. The I-95 corridor is a vital connection for people and
goods traveling along the east coast. FHWA has offered support
and assistance to State and local officials to help them safely
reopen this section of I-95 as quickly as possible. We are
working diligently with our divisions in all surrounding States
as well as with our sister agencies on emergency relief support
and maximizing all best practices.
Having led the Delaware Department of Transportation
through the I-495 bridge emergency in 2014, I am critically
aware of how important an artery I-95 is for the State, region
and Nation. Every day of closure will affect people and freight
on this vital corridor. We are laser focused on working with
our partners to get the road open as quickly as possible.
In addition to our commitment to safety, FHWA's work is
guided by an initiative we refer to as DRIVEN for the 21st
Century. There are six aspects of this initiative: delivery,
resilience, innovation, values, equity, and our Nation. Each of
the six aspects of the DRIVEN initiative guide our efforts to
implement the many programs and funding opportunities
authorized by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the
Inflation Reduction Act.
Delivery is the first aspect of DRIVEN. Thanks to these
acts, we have the funding necessary to make major improvements
in our transportation system. FHWA has taken numerous actions
that will support implementation of projects that improve
safety and people's lives, including distributing more than
$120 billion in highway formula funding to States and issuing
notices of funding opportunity for approximately $4.6 billion
in available funds.
We are also administering nearly 900 awards totaling $7.5
billion across nine discretionary programs. These are more than
just numbers. These dollars mean projects that will improve
both safety and people's lives.
FHWA has a longstanding practice of engaging with our
stakeholders and providing technical assistance. We have placed
an even greater emphasis on these efforts since the passage of
the legislation. FHWA is committed to supporting our
stakeholders and the State, tribal and local levels. We have
specific efforts in place to provide training and technical
assistance.
Resilience is an important part of building a modern
transportation system, as it will help us keep our
infrastructure strong and fulfill our most important duty:
getting people where they need to go, and getting them there
safely. FHWA has already made significant progress in carrying
out many funding programs that are specifically targeted at
addressing climate change, including distributing funding under
the PROTECT formula program and carbon reduction program, and
publishing a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the
PROTECT discretionary grant program.
Innovation is essential for the future of transportation
infrastructure. It will help us tackle a broad range of issues,
such as improving safety, increasing the resilience of our
infrastructure, and finding new ways to combat the climate
crisis. The current round of FHWA's Every Day Counts program
supports innovation specifically aimed at climate change
concerns, safety, and equity.
While the tireless service of FHWA employees is evidenced
by the quality of our transportation system, we are also
responsible for the members of our agency. FHWA is committed to
all of our core organizational values and caring for our staff.
Equity is one of FHWA's primary values and drives every one of
our programs, projects and initiatives. Not only do the
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act
include programs specifically intended to address equity
issues, but the historic investment in our infrastructure will
benefit those who find well-paid work rebuilding their
communities.
Every aspect of FHWA's work is driven by the people and the
Nation that we serve. We must create a transportation system
that delivers for our economy and all of our people, while
getting individuals and goods safely to their destination, a
transportation system that literally unites us as Americans.
DRIVEN will allow us to build results for both the U.S.
transportation system and Americans as a whole.
Thank you again for the opportunity to appear before you
today. I would be happy to answer any questions you may have.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Bhatt follows:]
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Senator Carper. Great. Thanks for that testimony.
I am going to start our questions by asking you about the
recent disaster that took place just north of us in
Pennsylvania on I-95 near Philadelphia. I know from our
conversations that you spent a fair amount of time there in the
days since then.
I understand the Governor Shapiro is making an announcement
literally in real time as we are gathered here today and that
you might be in a position to comment on what he is saying a
little bit later in our hearing. I look forward to that.
To start off, could you please talk with us this morning
about the role that the Federal Highway Administration will
play in coordinating with State and local agencies to respond
to the bridge collapse and restore the movement of goods and
people around the Philadelphia region while this bridge is
being rebuilt?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Chairman Carper. As you and the
Ranking Member mentioned, FHWA staff have been working
tirelessly on BIL. I just want to highlight that. In addition
to standing up this law, which has been a lot of effort, we
also have to deal with the business of keeping the Federal
highway system up and running.
I want to highlight for the committee that on Sunday, when
the calls started coming in, we had dozens of Federal Highway
staff here in D.C. and Pennsylvania just on calls all day long
and I just want to thank them for their efforts. I showed up in
Philly on Sunday, met with PennDOT. Secretary Carroll has been
doing an amazing job of marshaling the people there. They have
all the experts they need.
We are acutely aware of the impacts that this closure is
having not just on the city of Philadelphia or the State of
Pennsylvania but the region and the Nation. Secretary Buttigieg
went to visit yesterday and got a briefing. The President has
asked for daily briefings on this project.
Every lever that we can pull is being pulled. We released
``quick release'' funds last night for $3 million for the State
of Pennsylvania and the bulk of these costs will be covered by
the ER program.'
Senator Carper. All right, thank you. Just as a followup,
are there any initial takeaways that we can learn from this
disaster that might help prevent similar disasters in the
future?
Mr. Bhatt. Senator, I think you are keenly aware of this,
and members of the committee, just how critical our
transportation system is. I think sometimes we take it for
granted that it just operates and then when something like this
happens, it becomes very apparent why these investments are so
important, why this infrastructure is so important.
I would say, I think it will be important to wait for the
NTSB investigation into the cause, and learn any lessons that
we can. I feel, having been in a lot of those meetings over the
weekend and into yesterday that truly, when you just have all
of these engineers trying to solve a problem and you have all
the experts in the room, there is just an amazing energy and
unified focus. You would not be able to tell who were Democrats
and who were Republicans in the room there. I think that is
emblematic of infrastructure solutions.
Senator Carper. That is great. Thank you.
My second question, then I will yield to Senator Capito,
deals with the VMT pilot, vehicle miles traveled pilot. For
more than a decade, Federal fuel tax revenues have not kept up,
as you know, with transportation investment needs. A dozen
States have used Federal funds to study vehicle miles traveled
fees. Those pilots are showing some success, as you know.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law directs USDOT to create
an advisory board on funding alternatives and to undertake a
national study of vehicle miles traveled (VMT) fees. The goal
of that work is to produce meaningful data that would provide
timely input for the next reauthorization bill. Given that
deadline it is essential that the work begin, and begin
quickly.
Unfortunately, neither the advisory board nor the national
study have been established yet. My question is, what is the
timeline for the Federal Highway Administration setting up the
advisory board and getting the national study underway?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. I am aware of your interest
in this particular program dating back to when I was the
Secretary in Delaware, and was part of the Mileage Based User
Fee Alliance.
Senator Carper. I am not a Johnny-come-lately on this
issue.
Mr. Bhatt. Yes and in Colorado, when I was Vice Chair of
the Western Road Usage Charge Consortium. We are going to work
expeditiously to get the advisory committee set up and will
make sure that we get this important data for the committee as
we look to reauthorize the program.
Senator Carper. Great. Thank you. That is good to hear,
music to my ears. Thanks so much. Senator Capito.
Senator Capito. Thank you. In my opening statement I talked
about the debate that we had over the Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Performance measure and targets that we have rejected it here
in the Congress, and you are pursuing a measure that would
achieve this through rulemaking.
What is your response to what I said in my opening
statement? What authority do you have to be moving in this
direction, do you believe you have?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Ranking Member Capito. Before I
address that question, I would also like to echo your comments
about Lauren. We will miss her grace and professional
knowledge.
My reaction to your comments is, I hear you, and I heard
you during my confirmation hearing about your concerns about
the GHG piece. From the authority perspective, obviously we
have lawyers at Federal Highways who will examine that, lawyers
at USDOT.
I believe MAP-21 did provide authority to measure the
performance of the transportation system. I think we are in an
open rulemaking right now; we have received 40,000 comments
from folks. Before we move forward in that rulemaking, we would
want to understand all those public comments.
Senator Capito. I probably need a little more clarity on
what authority. We will follow back up with you on that.
Let's go to the FMIS and Delphi discrepancy that is
definitely in the weeds but very impactful for many States,
including the smaller States. We had asked about this, how are
you going to address this. The quote that came back was, ``Once
the task force has completed its review, USDOT and FHWA will
determine the type of adjustment required and the applicable
authority.'' Seems like we need the authority before we can
make the decision.
Where are you on this issue and where is the task force
work?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator, thank you, Ranking Member.
Specifically on the FMIS-Delphi issue, as soon as I became
aware of that, we have been in close contact with the States.
We did establish a task force. I think they are diligently
working through all of the potential impacts here.
When you have an issue of a $3.5 billion discrepancy, we
want to make sure that we have looked at every angle here. I am
hopeful that we will be able to provide you a little bit more
detail soon. My update here would be that we are working toward
getting a resolution as quickly as we can.
Senator Capito. Okay. Would that by the end of summer or
end of the year?
Mr. Bhatt. I would say as quickly as possible, definitely
this year. Some of this involves other coordination, but we
will continue to be in close contact.
Senator Capito. Okay. It looks like I am over my time by 3
minutes, but I do not feel like I have been that long.
[Laughter.]
Senator Capito. I am going to ask one more question.
Mr. Bhatt. It feels long to me, but that is Okay.
[Laughter.]
Senator Capito.
[Presiding.] Okay, that is pretty good. In January, NTSB
Chair Homendy raised concerns about the safety impacts of
electric vehicles on our roadways. Looking into this, the
realization that these vehicles weigh a heck of a lot more than
gasoline vehicles do. We reached out to FHWA to ask how you are
planning to look at this from the future safety of our
roadways. I am sure it is going to have impacts on not just the
bridge safety, guardrails, and also impacts.
Our response from them, from you, was that while FHWA does
not currently have any research planned on how the weight and
weight distribution of EVs may impact guardrails, bridge
safety, and the longevity of the highway, safety is No. 1
priority, we know that, safety is No. 1, why does the agency
not have planned research in this area as we are being pushed
in this area to move toward the EVs?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Ranking Member, for that question. I
will double check where we are in terms of research. Size and
weight is something that we take a look at, particularly with
regard to bridges and the performance of guardrail is obviously
something that we would want to understand the impacts.
Just as a personal example, I have a minivan that has an
electric battery. I would want to again verify, but I feel like
it is in the same weight range. Particularly as freight some of
these Class 8 haulers become electrified, that is something.
I will be happy to come back for you and get you some
specifics around our research.
Senator Capito. Thank you. This issue was raised by our
State DOT, that they are concerned about what kind of impacts
this could have on highway safety. We will followup with that.
Thank you.
Senator Cardin. Administrator Bhatt, first off, welcome. It
is nice to have you here. This past week, the Maryland Federal
congressional Delegation had our annual meeting with Governor
Moore. He was here with his cabinet, with Secretary Wiedefeld.
They were very optimistic and very thankful for the support
they have gotten from the Federal Government in the new
programs.
The Governor specifically mentioned the concerns of
communities that have been adversely impacted from
transportation programs in the use of our funds. In order to
deal with that we had our Reconnecting Communities that is
being implemented.
He also indicated that as we build new transportation
programs, we need to be more sensitive to community needs. Part
of the Infrastructure Bill was a significant increase in the
Transportation Alternative Program, 10 percent of the formula
funding. Can you share with us how you are administering that
program to make sure the intent of Congress to help communities
deal with transportation challenges under the Transportation
Alternative Program is being implemented?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator Cardin. We have heard from
communities across the Nation, including in Maryland, how
excited they are about the opportunity to transform their
communities. I will give you one very specific example. When it
comes to Complete Streets, which are an important part of
active transportation and transportation alternatives, as an
example, we have waived the local match on planning
requirements around Complete Streets for communities who want
to be able to access these funds but may not have the local
match or the planning expertise in-house. That is one example.
I think Transportation Alternatives is a very important
program, one that I have deployed in Delaware and Colorado and
am happy to provide further details to your office.
Senator Cardin. Thank you. One of the areas we are looking
at is how we can deal with traffic safety, including the use of
Transportation Alternative Program funding. I have introduced
legislation, working legislation, that would honor Sarah
Langencamp, who was a distinguished Foreign Service officer and
a constituent who was killed while riding her bike in Bethesda.
The legislation is being authored to allow a more liberal use
of our funds for highway and traffic safety, including the TAP
program.
We see the increased numbers of safety episodes, injuries
and deaths on our highways. Tell me the urgency of your efforts
to deal with traffic safety?
Mr. Bhatt. Sir, I remember when I became the Director of
the Colorado DOT, we had 484 fatalities. When I left 3 years
later, we were over 714, a 10 percent increase year over year,
the vast majority among vulnerable road users. For me as the
steward of the Federal Highway Administration and our role
there, I take every one of those fatalities incredibly
seriously.
We want to make sure that safety is out there and available
for people who want to take alternatives like biking, like
walking. It is an imperative for me as the Federal Highway
Administrator.
Senator Cardin. One of the challenges we have in multi-
modalism, which is a way in which we can really improve safety
as well as convenience and more efficient highway and
transportation system, is to encourage more multi-modalism. We
have that in our State. The challenges I that we have stovepipe
funding in many cases, so it is hard to coordinate a multi-
modal forum.
Tell me the efforts you are making in order to encourage
that type of transportation cooperation which is in the best
interest of our communities.
Mr. Bhatt. Senator, thank you for that question. I think
this is a primary focus for Secretary Buttigieg at USDOT,
bringing an all-of-DOT approach. We want to make sure that as
communities are reaching out, whether it is Federal Highway
funds or FTA funds or rail funds, as an example with
Reconnecting Communities, that we are looking at it through a
multi-modal lens so that the solutions that come out are the
best ones for those communities and not a federally prescribed
approach.
Senator Cardin.
[Presiding.] Thank you. Senator Cramer.
Senator Cramer. Thank you, Senator Cardin, and thank you,
Senator Capito, for this very good and important hearing.
Mr. Administrator, thanks for being here. I am going to
drill down a little more, I am going to go back to Senator
Capito's concerns about the proposed rule. Not only the lack of
authority, I believe there is a lack of authority even to do
it, but also in the practicality of it.
First, on the authority side before I get to why it is not
going to work in North Dakota or other places that are not
going to require commuter buses or subways. In the Inflation
Reduction Act, it dedicated $27 billion for a Green Bank,
something that the EPA withdrew almost immediately after
getting the authority to do it. They created instead this sort
of group slush fund for grants.
Now, there is nothing new in the law that expressly
prohibits such a thing, and this has been the tradition of
decades of administrations, Republican and Democrat alike, to
take the absence of a prohibition in a law that authorizes
certain things as a license to do whatever is not prohibited.
I want to speak to two really big recent Supreme Court
cases that are using the major questions doctrine, stating
emphatically that agencies do not have authority that is not
given them in law. That, of course, the first one being West
Virginia v. EPA, and the other one being the WOTUS Rule. Now
they are going to take up maybe a Chevron issue. We will see
how that turns out. I think it is becoming increasingly clear
that the bureaucracy is not a fourth branch of government, or
policymakers.
First of all, what is your sense of the actual authority to
do these things? Second, again I want to stress that it is
impractical in places, rural places, especially, we just are
not going to build subways in North Dakota to get people to
their farm. I would hope, if this is going to proceed, I would
rather have you withdraw, like you wisely did with the previous
memorandum, but short of that, I hope there is consideration
for the uniqueness or the different qualities of different
places across our very diverse Country.
Mr. Bhatt. Senator, I thank you for that question and
statement. I would frame this, you had a two-part piece there.
On the legal authority, I am not a lawyer, but I start
virtually all my meetings within Federal Highways as, we will
follow the law. We have lawyers on staff. I take that very
seriously.
I do not want to opine as a lawyer. I will follow the
direction that our lawyers give us on following the law very
clearly.
I hear you on the impacts particularly for rural States and
others around this piece, not likely to build a subway around
Devil's Lake. I would simply say here on this piece that this
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law did have a climate change title
in it. From a performance management perspective, when I was in
Delaware, it was hard to get folks to talk about performance
management, bridge conditions, pavement conditions.
I think what we are trying to look at here is not sort of
penalizing States for their greenhouse gas emissions, but just
get them to begin tracking greenhouse gas emissions. If 30
percent of our GHG is coming from the transportation sector,
this is the piece of it. Maybe it is not a subway, but maybe it
is alternative fuels, other things, electric vehicles, other
ways to drive that down.
I know it has become a very political hot button issue
here, but as with most of my efforts, I try to focus on the,
here is what we are trying to get to, and we will follow the
law, but not to be punitive but more from a tracking
perspective.
Senator Cramer. I appreciate that, but I also, on this
particular topic, for example, while here is a title that
relates to the basic issue, we discussed this specific issue
and decided not to do it. In other words, there is not a lot of
ambiguity about the intent of the Congress in this legislation.
Again, your lawyers will duke that out or they will find
some way around it eventually. Short of the Supreme Court
weighing in specifically on a lawsuit down the road, this is so
far not a rule, so we do not want to get too far ahead of
ourselves.
I think we have to consider that if we are going to be this
sort of general with our authorities at the administrative
level, the next administration might be of a different
persuasion and take that slush fund at the EPA and say, hey,
let's build a wall with solar panels at the southern border. It
seems extreme, and it probably is. There is a lot of less
extreme examples that I could probably come up with that I
think Democrats would find objectionable for good reason.
With that, I appreciate your hanging in there with the law.
I always dismiss the lawyers after I get their advice before I
make big decisions. Thank you.
Senator Capito.
[Presiding.] Senator Whitehouse?
Senator Whitehouse. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr.
Bhatt, for being here.
I would offer a different view than my distinguished
Republican friends. I think that if Congress specifically
authorizes you to do something, then that is good and you have
a clear direction from Congress. If Congress fails to
specifically authorize you to do something, then what you
referred to as your innate executive authorities, and if
Congress wishes, it could forbid you to pursue those inherent
executive administrative authorities which they have done with
things like Republican-driven efforts to prevent the IRS from
policing political dark money.
There are examples of doing that. I do not think it is
correct to say that when Congress considers a specific
authorization and then does not pass it, that failure is a
lawful restriction on your ability to do what you need to do
using your innate administrative powers.
As a State which has a coastline, which we believe is going
to intrude quite far on our current seaside and bayside
boundaries, predictably in the years ahead, we are looking at
very significant changes to the actual map of Rhode Island.
Dealing with climate change responsibly is a deadly serious
matter for my State. I would strongly encourage you to pursue
your greenhouse gas performance measures to the full extent of
your executive authorities. It matters to States like mine that
you get this right.
Whatever pressure there is to the contrary, please remember
those of us who are highly vulnerable to the effects of climate
change, to the ocean acidification, the ocean warming, to the
sea level rise, to the coastal erosion, to the air quality
effects, all of that. I offer that as a contrary view to what
Congress intended by not specifically authorizing you.
The Bridge Investment Program, is that going to get another
round of funding? Are you going to have another round of
applications?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. Yes, bridge investment,
there will be another round that comes out, I believe, this
summer.
Senator Whitehouse. What is the timing for that more
specifically, if you know?
Mr. Bhatt. More specifically, other than this summer?
Senator Whitehouse. Yes. Do you have a date or a month?
Mr. Bhatt. July or August.
Senator Whitehouse. Some time in July or August?
Mr. Bhatt. Yes.
Senator Whitehouse. Okay, so you will be accepting
applications during that period for that second round?
Mr. Bhatt. Yes, sir.
Senator Whitehouse. Okay, good to know. Thank you for that.
I think that is all I have. Let me recognize Cory Baba from
Newport, who is with us. Good to have a Rhode Islander in the
house. I look forward to working with you, to support you in
every way possible on the emissions dangers and having proper
information in order to assess and address those dangers
appropriately. There are many, many, many Americans who are
counting on you to make the right decision, not the one that
the fossil fuel industry wants. Thank you.
Senator Capito. Senator Merkley. We are waiting for Senator
Ricketts, but we will go with Senator Merkley. There is so much
going on, so we are going to have a lot of in and out here.
Senator Merkley. Thank you very much. I appreciate your
testimony and your work.
A couple of questions. I want to start with the issue that
has been brought up in my State. Oregon is in the Cascadia
subduction zone. There is a lot of preparation for essential
infrastructure to survive the big one, if you will. We have
been told by the Department of Transportation that they do not
consider the need for seismic resiliency as relevant to a
number of their grant pool applications.
That certainly is a concern. We are working to rebuild one
of our bridges to make sure that there is at least one bridge
that survives.
Can you speak a little bit to why seismic resiliency is not
considered a factor for you all in a number of these grant
programs?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator, and am always made aware
when I travel to the west coast and in these seismic zones the
difference in bridge piers, and the size of those piers as
compared to non-seismic activity.
I would want to double check on that. I know that the
Golden Gate large bridge investment that was made for $400
million was a seismic retrofit for the Golden Gate Bridge. That
was a critical piece of that funding. I would want to double
check where we stood on that.
Senator Merkley. Okay. I would love to followup with you in
regard to the specific project and the concern that is relevant
to the multi-modal project discretionary grants, the bridge
investment program, and the RAISE grant program. A bridge may
be functional now, but if we do not have any bridges that
survive a quake, then addressing the emergency at that time is
a real challenge, and thus trying to responsibly reinforce key
infrastructure.
I want to turn next to a project that really began with
Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, who served here previously. They
developed a program in his home State where along the highways
they did pollinator plots and had different clubs maintaining
different pollinator plots. Our highways create an enormous
opportunity to address the pollinator Armageddon. We have lost
massive numbers of butterflies and bees along our highways.
One of the species that catches the public attention is the
Western Monarch. The Western Monarch went from a high of about
10 million 40 years ago down to as low as 2,000 butterflies two
winters ago. It has had a couple good years, then we had the
huge storms over the winter in Southern California back this
late winter, early spring this year. Another huge hit.
That pollinator butterfly travels four generations to go
north, one generation to go back south to California. Nobody
sees Monarchs in Oregon anymore. They think they see them, and
they are actually seeing the yellowtail butterfly. It is not
orange, but it is yellow, so hey, close enough, maybe I saw a
Monarch.
[Laughter.]
Senator Merkley. The bigger issue is that we could really
have clubs sponsor plots of land along our north-south
corridors, just as Tennessee did along their highways. We got
this bill, the Pollinator-Friendly Practices on Roadsides and
Highways Act into the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. You all
have not stood it up yet.
It is really an opportunity for folks to directly
participate in establishing plots along these major corridors
that would assist with all kinds of species. I mentioned the
Monarchs, and people think milkweed. Yes, milkweed is essential
for the female butterflies to lay their eggs, but the adult
butterflies need the pollinator flowers, just like other
pollinators do. It would help whole lot.
Are you familiar with this program? Can you tell me how the
stand-up is going?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. I remember when I was the
Secretary in Delaware, we had a bee truck overturn on I-95.
Millions of bees, and just trying to make sure that we were
able to get that to a successful ending, because of the
importance of pollinators.
I would want to double check and come back to you exactly
where we are in standing up that program. I hear you on the
importance of ensuring that from an agriculture perspective and
just from our national environment, those pollinators are
critical.
Senator Merkley. You can imagine hundreds of clubs saying,
just like they adopt a mile of highway now to keep it clean,
saying yes, we want to go seed pollinator nectar-producing
flowers and milkweed and contribute to a major opportunity to
use the sides of our highways that are otherwise just not
contributing much, but there is a perfect possible connection.
Finally, I want to encourage the work to roll out the EV
charging stations. I think the model for this program is that
it has to be as easy to charge up as it is to fuel up. If you
have driven an electric vehicle any distance, you are probably
aware that is often not the case because of the great
complexity of the different charging technologies that are out
there by different companies. I really pushed the Department of
Transportation to have a national standard, so it is as simple
to charge up as it is to fuel up.
How do you see that program going?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. Obviously, the President has
set a goal of 500,000 chargers. I agree with you, if we are
going to be successful with the EV rollout for the American
public that they do need to be able to charge as easily as they
are able to fill up.
I think I would give the committee credit for the
investments that are being made through the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law. We are actually seeing the market moving
now with the big announcement between Tesla, Ford, GM, and lots
of other companies now looking to move that standard. I think
that is a very positive outcome and hopefully one where we will
continue to see consolidation.
Senator Merkley. Thank you very much. Thanks, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Carper.
[Presiding.] Before I turn to Senator Ricketts, I apologize
for being out of the room. We have hearings going on in other
committees. In the Homeland Security Committee on which I serve
they are actually business and votes. They need to drag me in
there every now and then. I apologize for leaving.
While I was out of the room there was some discussion, and
I just want to make a comment if I can. In my absence, I would
have said something else if I had been here.
There was a fair amount of discussion on the greenhouse gas
performance measure and the fact that the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law did not amend the performance measure
section of the law in order to require a greenhouse gas
measure. I would note that my own recollection is that our
committee actually did consider a provision that would require
a stringent greenhouse gas performance measure while also
exempting half the States in the Nation from that measure.
We declined to include that language in favor of retaining
the existing authority to set performance measures for
environmental sustainability which include greenhouse gas
emissions. That authority was created by Moving Ahead for
Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) in 2012. I am glad
that the Federal Highway Administration is still using that
authority. Thank you.
All right, let me yield now to Senator Ricketts for his
questions. Go ahead, Senator Ricketts. Thanks for joining us.
Senator Ricketts. Thank you, Chairman Carper, Ranking
Member Capito.
Senator Carper. Thank you for being such a faithful
attendee.
Senator Ricketts. No problem. My pleasure. I told you I
love this committee.
Senator Carper. We do, too.
[Laughter.]
Senator Ricketts. My first question, Administrator Bhatt,
first of all, I do want to thank your team for the relationship
with the Nebraska Department of Transportation. Prior to me, I
was Governor, got sworn in in 2015, and prior to that, I think
it was a pretty poor relationship between our Department of
Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration.
Your team has really helped repair that, and I know that my
first director, Kyle Schneweis, through John Selmer, now Vicki
Kramer, appreciate the working relationship. Thank you very
much for continuing to buildupon that relationship. It is very
important that we continue to work very closely between the
Federal Highway Administration and the State departments of
transportation. I really appreciate that.
I also reiterate what Senator Capito said about making sure
that our agencies take legislation that we pass and faithfully
execute that legislation in the way that Congress intended it
to be implemented.
With that, I would like to jump into the Infrastructure and
Jobs Act and talk a little bit about the August redistribution.
I believe for Fiscal Year 2022 the August redistribution jumped
up to $6.2 billion. I think with the Infrastructure Investment
and Jobs Act we can expect to see that August redistribution
continue to climb.
However, as you know, there is a very limited amount of
time then with which departments of transportation,
specifically the Nebraska Department of Transportation in my
case, can take that, get that money back and redeploy it
efficiently and effectively. As that number becomes larger,
that is going to become an increasing challenge. We want to
make sure obviously those dollars are spent effectively.
What do you see with regard to that August redistribution?
How can we make that process one where State departments of
transportation will be able to have access to that money and be
able to use it in a way that it is not going to be inefficient?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator, and yes, your first director
that worked for you had a much more challenging last name than
mine to pronounce.
[Laughter.]
Senator Ricketts. And spell, too.
Mr. Bhatt. Kyle is a great friend and grateful that we are
rebuilding that relationship in Nebraska.
You raised a very important issue, Senator, the August
redistribution. In addition to the FMIS Delphi issue, when I
came in in January, one of the first things we did was sit down
with AASHTO at the TRB meeting in January to say, listen, we
were at $6.2 billion last year, we are going to be higher. We
generally notify States in July of the impending August
redistribution numbers. We have been in close contact with the
States since basically March saying, this is coming, please get
ready, what can we do to help you, what flexibilities can we
get through?
Our goal is, and I know the AASHTO goal and even within
communities within those States is to make sure that all that
ObLim does get used. That is one of our very primary focuses
the next few weeks.
Senator Ricketts. Are there additional flexibilities or
specific flexibilities that you have in mind to be able to give
State DOTs so that they can again employ these dollars?
Essentially, does it get bigger, in a more effective way?
Mr. Bhatt. Senator, thank you for that. Yes, what I say,
and this is always very important for me, I say we have to
follow the law, let us follow the law, absolutely follow the
law, but for each of our division administrators, when you are
working with all of those States, whether it is West Virginia,
Delaware, Nebraska, if the State has a creative idea that says,
hey, we might be able to apply some of this ObLim on a project
here, and they have contract authority, we want to work. Then
going forward, I think this is something that because of the
size of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law if the August
redistribution is going to be at this level, it might be
something we might want to look at for a legislative fix going
forward.
Senator Ricketts. Okay, fair enough, thank you.
Also in relation to the IIJA, you have these discretionary
grants. One of the things I am hearing from folks in my home
State is about the process, especially if you think about some
of the smaller localities that may not be able to apply for
some of these grants, the challenge of getting through the
application process, what sort of resources do you have or do
you think you can do for some of these localities to make it
easier specifically navigating like the BIL launchpad for
example. I have heard of some challenges with that. Again,
especially for smaller communities.
What can you do to provide extra resources or make the
process easier for those communities to be able to apply for
these discretionary grants?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. You know, I think what we
want to make sure is that for all of these communities, whether
they are large State DOTs or cities or smaller communities, we
want to get them an award and then also get them across the
finish line with a successful project. We have LTAB, Local
Technical Assistance Program, Tribal Technical Assistance
Program. We have set up websites. The Secretary's office is
very engaged.
If there are specific communities you would like us to
reach out to, we would be happy to do that.
Senator Ricketts. Great. Thank you very much. I appreciate
that offer.
With that, Mr. Chairman, I will turn the time back over to
you.
Senator Carper. Thanks so much.
Senator Markey has arrived. Senator Markey, you are
recognized.
Senator Markey. Thank you so much, Mr. Chairman.
Ambassador Bhatt, it is good to see you again. I want to
come back to our favorite subject, the Cape Cod bridges, and
the need to ensure that now that they are 9 months older than
the last time you testified, that they are in even more
desperate need of replacement. If a severe storm were to strike
Cape Code, I am extremely worried that the bridges will become
a bottleneck for residents and visitors seeking to evacuate,
creating a very severe safety risk.
Can you reaffirm your commitment to working with me to
replace the Cape Cod bridges?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. Just as in my confirmation
hearing, now I know them as the Bourne and Sagamore bridges,
not just the Cape Cod bridges. After Brent Spence, these are
probably the bridge projects that I have heard quite a bit
about, and absolutely, this is a priority focus for our
Administration. I am happy to continue to work with you on it.
Senator Markey. It is just so important. It is the only Way
off Cape Cod. When that storm comes, and it is coming,
evacuation will be catastrophic for those bridges out there.
The highways and roads of the past splintered and displaced
communities. As we drive into our clean energy future, we ca
not greenlight more inequality. We have to put those injustices
in the rearview mirror. In cities like Philadelphia, Chicago,
and New York, the majority white census tracks are more likely
to have electric vehicle charging stations.
We are reckoning with that in Massachusetts and Boston.
Most EV charging infrastructure is located in the seaport,
Fenway, Beacon Hill, but neighborhoods like Roxbury,
Dorchester, and Charlestown have limited to no options. That is
why last Congress I introduced the Community Vehicle Charging
Act, which would invest in EV charging infrastructure in
environmental justice communities. Intentional and equitable
deployment of electric vehicle charging must be a priority in
the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law implementation. One way that
Boston is increasing access is by deploying chargers in city-
owned parking lots in low-income and Black and Brown
communities.
Administrator Bhatt, how does the charging and fueling
infrastructure discretionary community charging program help
cities and States to tackle this conundrum, making sure that
the charging stations are in those inner-city communities?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator Markey. The significant
investments in electric vehicles that this committee put
forward in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we are working
with States on their (National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure)
NEVI programs and ensuring that they are adhering to the
standards that we have put in place.
Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) actually just
closed the discretionary grant program on June 13th. We are
anticipating opening all of those applications. That is a
critical lens for us to make sure that we not only have the
interstates covered, but also all of our communities, and the
very communities that you mentioned in your comments.
Senator Markey. Great. Thank you so much. It is very, very
important.
Do you think mobile charging has a role to play in the
charging and fuel infrastructure program as well, particularly
to provide resilience to charging systems in case of emergency?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. Yes, I think that this is a
very exciting time in this nascent industry. It is one that I
think the President is very clear he wants America to lead in.
We are going to look at an all-of-the-above approach to make
sure this transition is successful.
Senator Markey. Yes, and technical assistance is going to
be very important for front-line communities to be able to
apply for the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill programs and for
the Inflation Reduction Act programs. Is the Federal Highway
Administration supporting communities so that they can make the
most of these funding opportunities in front-line communities?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. Yes. I think what is both a
blessing and a new burden is the fact that while we have
traditionally worked with State DOTs to administer this
program, there are many, many direct recipients. Again, as I
said before, we want to make them successful in getting an
award and also cutting a ribbon on that project.
Senator Markey. Thank you. Finally, I was proud to secure
$45 million in the 2023 Omnibus for my Active Transportation
Infrastructure Investment program, which promotes walking and
biking infrastructure and supports active transportation
networks that allow people to safely travel without a car, and
those active transportation networks reduce transportation
emissions, increase mobility. Now that the program is
officially funded, the Federal Highway Administration needs to
deploy those funds as quickly as possible.
Can you commit to swiftly implementing my Active
Transportation Infrastructure Investment program?
Mr. Bhatt. Yes, Senator. I think everyone within Federal
Highways knows that I am a huge supporter of active
transportation.
Senator Markey. Thank you. Senator Sullivan and I, we
partnered on that. It is just amazing how much Alaska and
Greater Boston have in common.
[Laughter.]
Senator Markey. In that partnership we can just see a
future that works for everyone. Thank you.
Senator Carper. You see, Shailen, Markey and Sullivan,
Massachusetts and Alaska, it is a marriage made in heaven.
[Laughter.]
Senator Carper. Senator Sullivan, you are on.
Senator Sullivan. Mr. Chairman, I am over here kind of
cracking up, because Senator Markey was mentioning his bill. I
was just going to say it is really our bill. He is the lead,
but I think I was your lead Republican cosponsor on that.
Senator Markey. I saved that, I thought I did a good job of
digging out of the hole I was in. No?
[Laughter.]
Senator Sullivan. Thank you. Administrator, you are seeing
some very important bipartisanship here. I do want you to spend
all that $45 million from our bill, particularly there is a
project outside of Anchorage called Moose Loop. If you can take
a hard look at Moose Loop, this has a great potential. It is
right up the alley of what Senator Markey was talking about.
That is my first issue I wanted to raise with you. Have you
heard of Moose Loop yet?
Mr. Bhatt. I have now, sir.
Senator Sullivan. Okay, now you have.
Senator Markey. In the Boston public guidance, we have
``make way for the ducklings.'' Not moose, but----
[Laughter.]
Senator Sullivan. It is the same concept. These may be a
little bit bigger animals.
Thank you, Senator Markey. In all seriousness, it was great
legislation. I was very honored to cosponsor it. I think it is
going to benefit a lot of people across the Country. We will
send you information on Moose Loop.
Let me get back to another issue that relates to Alaska,
Administrator. We still have to get you up there, right?
Mr. Bhatt. It is on my list, probably more summer than
winter, but we will do Moose Loop together.
Senator Sullivan. We can do that, for sure. That is a good
idea.
I want to talk about another part of the Infrastructure
Bill, I did vote for the Infrastructure Bill, which is the
PROTECT program. That is about resiliency. Alaska has more
coastline than the rest of the lower 48 States combined. When
you talk about resiliency for coastal America, we are over 50
percent of it for the whole Country.
You might remember, it did not make a lot of press back
here, but last fall, the west coast of Alaska was hit by a
typhoon, Typhoon Merbok, a very big storm that did a lot of
damage. Our State DOT has been working with FEMA and your
agency on faster ways to complete the repairs to the damaged
infrastructure that took place after this typhoon.
I am wondering, what are you doing to implement the PROTECT
program particularly in the coastal communities in America, but
in my State, given like I said that we constitute over 50
percent of all the coastline in America?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator Sullivan. I think whether it
is a typhoon hitting Alaska or flooding in Kentucky and West
Virginia, there is just no shortage of weather events that are
testing the resiliency of our system. I remember being in
Juneau a couple of years ago for the WASHTO events and hearing
about some of the impacts of sea level rise and climate change
there.
I was just recently at the Western Association of State
Highway and Transportation Official (WASHTO) event and met with
the Alaska director of DOT, talking about the very unique
coastal aspects and needs.
Senator Sullivan. Good.
Mr. Bhatt. Specifically, with PROTECT, we have distributed
the funds to the States through the formula program and have
also launched the discretionary programs. I am happy to visit
with you if there are any discretionary opportunities. I share
your concern and the importance for that program.
Senator Sullivan. Okay, good. Let me mention another topic
that I know you and I have talked a lot about. Senator Capito
has been leading the charge on it here in the Senate. That of
course is the ever-endless goal of so many of us, including a
lot of my Democratic colleagues on permitting reform. We have a
system that is just dysfunctional, that it takes forever to get
projects, whether roads or ports or bridges or mines, or energy
projects off the ground. It hurts the Country, hurts workers
and it is self-inflicted.
The Infrastructure Bill has some decent permitting reforms
we negotiated here actually in this committee. Not enough in my
view. Then so did the debt ceiling agreement. I have two parts
to my question.
One is, what are you doing to implement those? Very
bipartisan, we want to keep them going. Certain groups in
America do not like it, but they are definitely in the
minority.
Second, with regard to permitting, one of the most
egregious things that I have seen that really, really kind of
is starting to put us in the world of Venezuela and banana
republics is, and I have seen it a lot in this Administration,
particularly as it relates to Alaska, we had a number of
projects that went through final EISs six, 7 years, millions of
dollars. Got record of decisions from the previous
administration, professional, Federal employees doing that.
This Administration, the Biden Administration, has come
back and is looking at all these records of decision on
infrastructure, on roads, in Alaska saying, you know, you did
not consult enough. We are going to reverse that. Literally
opening up records of decisions that are 4 years old. I mean,
this is just nuts.
Any views on both of these issues relating to permitting in
general? Then reopening records of decision that are 4 years
old. I mean, that is not the rule of law. It is not America,
but the Biden Administration is doing a lot to my State, and it
is outrageous.
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator, for the question. I would
say on the first part, having been a State DOT secretary in two
States, I have anxiously awaited a record of decision or a
finding of no significant impacts. As a project delivery
person, coming from the private sector, before I took this job,
I am always resolutely focused on the critical path, how can we
deliver these projects on time and on budget.
From a Federal Highways perspective, recognizing that we
are not a permitting agency, we are the ones who are actually
going to our sister agencies who do issue the permits. However,
we do have great relationships with Army Corps, Fish and
Wildlife. I think we are trying to leverage those relationships
to try to get the important reforms put in place.
In terms of opening records of decision, I would love to
visit with you offline about that. As I say, we want to follow
the law, and that is my commitment, that we will do that.
Senator Sullivan. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Carper. Thank you, Senator Sullivan.
Senator Fetterman, you are next. You are recognized, please
proceed. Welcome. Thanks for coming.
Senator Fetterman. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Carper. We had earlier today some comments about
the tragic accident on I-95. If you want to make any comments
with respect to that, feel free. You are recognized.
Senator Fetterman. The I-95, obviously you are pretty much
preoccupied with I-95. I certainly am too. We know it is a
major artery, not just for Pennsylvania, but for the east
coast. A lot of Pennsylvanians are worried that delays in
repairs will bring it to a standstill.
I am glad to see last night you were so quick to get $3
million to the emergency relief, the funds got out so quickly.
Just personally, it seemed $3 million was not enough. It seems
like it is going to be a lot more expensive than that. I get
the sense, President Biden, I was standing next to a collapsed
bridge in western Pennsylvania, and things moved on very
quickly and got it down. I am confident that the same is going
to happen in east Pennsylvania as well.
Right now, you have an incredible asset in Southeastern
Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA), that is the
regional rail and subway lines that I think could be a game
changer. SEPTA still needs support to expand temporary capacity
to ease congestion on the roads.
My question to you, Administrator, could you provide
emergency relief on other funds, so that your agency could help
SEPTA's temporary operating costs to make transit a viable
alternative for local travel? Will you commit to working with
the Secretary to get the SEPTA support in the next few weeks?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. I know how important this
project is. Chairman Carper had reached out to me on Sunday,
and I know had connected us. I know you are very engaged on
this.
Specifically to the $3 million on the quick release, all of
the costs of this will be borne through the emergency relief
program. The $3 million is sort of a down payment. It is about
a 10 percent estimate of what they think they are going to
need. If that number goes up, we will provide more funding.
That was the reason for the $3 million.
Specifically on SEPTA, I was with Leslie Richards, who is
the general manager of SEPTA, yesterday. Secretary Buttigieg
was briefed on that. We again, back to this concept of
following the law, Federal Highway ER funds specifically relate
to added capacity on SEPTA. We are working to stand that up.
Secretary Buttigieg has also asked us to look at what FTA
provisions they may have. SEPTA is a critical link here for
that corridor.
Senator Fetterman. Yes. While I am here, I also want to
talk about the Federal Government's dragging its feet in
implementing expert advice and making streets safer as well. I
reached out twice to express my concerns about the actions your
agency should be taking to make streets safe, and frustration
at the delays I have been witnessing with some key guidelines.
When can we expect that these actions will be finalized and
will you commit to working with my office to address the
concerns that I have raised?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. I think Secretary Buttigieg
is very clear that safety is our No. 1 priority. As part of the
National Roadway Safety Strategy, safe streets, safe design,
safer speeds, these are all things that we talk about
incessantly within Federal Highways. I can followup with your
staff around any concerns you may have raised, so that we can
more quickly deploy safety in our system.
Senator Fetterman. Thank you. I look forward to your
response to my other question. Thank you very much,
Administrator.
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, sir.
Senator Fetterman. I cede my balance to the chair.
Senator Carper. The chair is happy to have it.
We will turn to the issue of I-95 a little bit later in the
hearing. Thank you, Senator Fetterman.
Senator Lummis, you are next. Following you is Senator
Kelly.
Senator Lummis. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
First of all, truck parking. I have a bill with Senator
Kelly called the Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act, where we
are going to authorize some additional funding to your agency
to address the backlog. As we continue to debate that bill, I
am interested to hear what work you are doing now on this
issue.
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator Lummis. I remember when I was
Colorado DOT director, we would get the closure notices for I-
80 often. We would start reaching out to our commercial vehicle
partners to let them know they did not need to come up, we
tried to stop them before they got up and got stacked up too
much. This is a critical issue for us.
I would say this is an eligibility that we have extended
through our formula funds. There are even discretionary grants
that have been awarded that involve truck parking. I know this
is something that myself and Secretary Buttigieg are supportive
of.
Senator Lummis. Thank you. We just had an absolutely
outrageous winter in Wyoming this year. Road closures were
extremely common. I think they are bound to continue to be, so
you know the challenges of that high plains environment.
I want to switch to the Inflation Reduction Act a little
bit, a few questions about that. Last year, I had major
concerns regarding the program that the IRA created called the
Neighborhood Access and Equity Grant program. My concerns there
are I do not want it just to be a way to funnel taxpayer
dollars to urban areas and neglect rural areas.
Can you give me some assurance that that is not happening?
Or do you have some information about how that money is going
out? How is it being awarded?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator Lummis. Obviously for any of
the discretionary programs, we will issue a notice of funding
opportunity that has great detail and prescribes how we award
the funding. I am quite certain we have examples of rural
communities that have received funds. I would be happy to
followup with you directly after the hearing.
Senator Lummis. Super. I will look forward to that.
I want to touch on some issues that were also discussed by
Senator Sullivan. The environmental review system is
effectively broken. It really affects highway dollars, because
of the massive increase in inflation in the construction
industry. It exceeds inflation in other areas of our economy.
Delays in construction are hugely costly.
I have introduced a bill, it is called the Interactive
Federal Review Act. It is to test interactive cloud-based
platforms that are estimated to shorten the time spent
reviewing the documents for large projects by as much as half.
Have you had a chance to look at this idea? Do you believe
a step like that could help expedite project delivery?
Mr. Bhatt. Senator Lummis, thank you for that comment and
that work. I was in the private sector before I came to this
role. Digital delivery, digital tools for construction and
bringing all of that, digital NEPA process I think are
something that are very exciting. I am happy to work with your
office on that.
Just on the inflation piece, I was in a global
transportation role. I would say inflation is a huge issue in
America for our transportation projects, but inflation was also
an issue in the Middle East around transportation projects, in
the U.K., in Asia. There is sort of a global issue with
commodities now. I wanted to highlight that, that it is a
challenge we are dealing with globally, not just here in the
U.S.
Senator Lummis. Good point. I want to run another thing by
you that also deals with these types of delays. Congress
updated the categorical exclusion in the IIJA for projects with
limited Federal funding, $6 million. Now that inflation has
made a $6 million contribution of Federal funds to a project,
such a small contribution that you ca not effectively use
categorical exclusions, I am inclined to want to raise the
CatEx amount to like $12 million, double it, so that it can be
meaningfully used instead of being almost irrelevant.
Do you have any comments on that?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. I am happy to work with your
staff to evaluate what that right number would be. We want to
be able to use a CE whenever possible. I think your notes on
inflation, I am very focused on project delivery. If we can
deliver these projects on time, it is going to help on the
inflation issue as well.
Senator Lummis. Can I ask one more question about that? In
your experience, what advantages does it give a project to
qualify for a categorical exclusion?
Mr. Bhatt. From my experience, if you can get a CE, then
you are not looking at doing the higher levels of environmental
review, but that is always correlated with the impacts to a
project. If it is a major bridge project that has water impacts
and it potentially some travel impacts or other issues, that is
where you are going to start to add time in review, because
there are just greater impacts for a project.
Senator Lummis. The structural integrity of the project has
to be evaluated regardless of whether you have a CatEx or not.
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. Structural design elements
would be different than the environmental impacts of a project.
Senator Lummis. Thank you very much. Thanks, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Carper. Senator Lummis, thanks as always for
joining us.
Senator Kelly, good morning.
Senator Kelly. Thank you. Good morning, Mr. Chairman. Thank
you.
Administrator Bhatt, thanks again for being here. It is
great to see you. I want to start by discussing a project to
widen InterState 10, which goes through Arizona, goes all the
way across the Country, in fact, but the area between Phoenix
and Tucson is a problem. Every single day, there is an accident
that backs up this stretch of highway for hours.
It is because there are portions of this highway that are
just two lanes in each direction. It is a major safety issue.
It is also worth noting that this stretch of roadway that I
am talking about is within the Gila River Indian Community. Yet
the infrastructure does not currently exist to adequately
connect the community to this critical transportation corridor.
Fortunately, the Arizona Department of Transportation, the
Gila River Indian Community, the local leaders from throughout
Maricopa, Pinal and Pima Counties in the State of Arizona have
come together to support a comprehensive plan to add an extra
lane to the interState in each direction, and add several
critical interchanges to improve connectivity for the Gila
River Indian Community.
To date, the State of Arizona and the Maricopa Association
of Governments have committed more than $850 million in State
and local transportation funding to complete this project. It
is a lot of money. We are hoping to make up the remainder of
the funding with either an Infrastructure for Rebuilding
America (INFRA) or a Mega grant this year.
Administrator Bhatt, can you provide any indication of when
you expect the notice of funding opportunity for the INFRA and
Mega grants?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator Kelly. I am very aware both
of the importance of that interState to those communities,
Phoenix and Tucson, and also as a vital freight corridor for
the United States. I am happy to be in contact with Director
Toth as well, if that would be helpful. I will give you
specifics, but we have so many of these NOFOs that are coming
out, but again, I believe that would be one that would be
coming out in the summer timeframe as well.
Senator Kelly. Okay, some time in the summer. Can you get
back to us with a specific date, back to my office?
Mr. Bhatt. Absolutely, sir.
Senator Kelly. Thank you. As you know, we applied for one
of the Mega grants last year for this specific project. We did
not receive it. After that decision, I heard concerns from some
in Arizona that the project was not selected in favor of some
multimodal projects. I know you cannot comment on a specific
project. Can you speak more broadly about whether projects to
expand interstates, especially in fast-growing States like
Arizona, could be competitive for a future Mega or an INFRA
grant award?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. I think that what we always
want to make sure is that, I think we think that States and
locals are the ones who make the best decisions about their
transportation needs. We are happy to work with those
communities.
On Mega, I think we are probably weeks, not months away on
Mega.
Senator Kelly. Is there any reason why adding additional
lanes to an interState would not qualify for a Mega grant?
Mr. Bhatt. I know there are some of the carbon reduction
program grants that specifically forbid it. There is nothing
expressly in the law that would prevent capacity under some of
these programs.
Senator Kelly. Okay. Last year, there were nine Mega grants
awarded, I think that was the number. None of these projects,
we took a look at them closely, none of them appeared to be
located on tribal land or meaningfully served tribal
communities. Can you speak to the work that Federal Highways is
doing to ensure that tribal communities are able to apply for
and be competitive for grant funding opportunities like the
Mega and INFRA grants?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Senator. I worked closely with the
Ute Mountain Ute Tribe in Colorado when I was the director
there. I am aware of sometimes the unique circumstances. We
have a tribal technical assistance program that we work
directly with tribes to help them apply and I am happy to
connect with your office to provide more details.
Senator Kelly. Helping them apply, does that also help them
be competitive?
Mr. Bhatt. I believe those two would be synonymous, but I
want to just double check.
Senator Kelly. All right, thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Carper. Thank you, Senator Kelly. Senator Capito?
Senator Capito. Yes, thank you.
I wanted to go back to one of the questions that I had
asked you about the safety on EVs. We talked about the weight
limits, so my crack staff got me this from NTSB head Homendy,
who was quoted as saying the Ford's F-150 Lightning EV pickup
is 2,000 to 3,000 pounds heavier than the same model's
combustion version. The Mustang Mach-E electric SUV and the
Volvo EC40EV, she said, are about 33 percent heavier than their
gasoline counterparts. This is an issue.
I would just encourage you at the Department, among all
your other things, to look as this increases in a number of EVs
what it is going to do to our safety impacts on the highway. I
think it will have an impact. We know weight has an impact on
damages.
I want to ask about Buy America. I am understanding that
there are inconsistencies with the implementation of Buy
America-Build America provisions that we put into the IIJA. It
has kind of got a patchwork of State implementation challenges,
causing some confusion.
FHWA will play a major role in the Buy America waiver
process. If not handled, this could bring some of our projects
to a halt. I am hearing Buy America on all kinds of different
issues, and it goes back to the supply issues that Senator
Lummis was talking about.
Can you talk about the waiver process at FHWA and how you
are preparing for the influx of requests that are going to be
coming in the future as this market tightens?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Ranking Member. Yes, your crack
staff, I am sure provides you with a lot of information.
I would say very specifically on the Buy America, when I
hear the President speak, I think I hear him talking about the
transformational aspects of the law and building projects and
improving our infrastructure. With equal passion, I hear the
President talk about rebuilding the economy and ensuring that
these are good-paying American jobs and these products are
built here.
As we are rebuilding our industrial capacity around some of
these projects that are being reshored now, and we are getting
battery plants built here, there is going to be a tension
between getting projects built quickly and then getting those
projects made with products that are made here in America.
So we are just going to have to find a way to thread this
needle of ensuring that we are getting projects done quickly
and then finding appropriate waivers to make that happen, but
making sure that we are also rebuilding the industrial
capacity.
Senator Capito. Are you finding any larger influx of
requests for waivers?
Mr. Bhatt. Ranking Member, I would have to go back and
double check, but generally, yes, we are hearing----
Senator Capito. Do you have the mechanisms set up to be
able to address that growing challenge within the Department?
Mr. Bhatt. Every waiver request that would come in, we have
a process for evaluating.
Senator Capito. You do?
Mr. Bhatt. Yes.
Senator Capito. Let me ask about One Federal Decision. I
have been touting that as a way to streamline and obviously, it
was in the debt bill that we just passed for other projects.
There is concern, I think.
Has this been implemented enough to really make a
difference? Are you seeing more streamlined implementation on
these projects? You would know, coming from the State sector,
whether it is moving faster. How many projects are on track to
achieve that 2-year goal for the EISs? Are you utilizing the
provision that requires one environmental document?
Talk about One Federal Decision, your implementation and
some of these specifics that I have mentioned.
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Ranking Member. I would say, as
somebody with a project delivery background, I appreciate these
efforts to just get greater clarity and accelerate project
delivery. I am happy to come back with very specific lists of
projects that we are implementing some of these reviews on. I
would say that for all of these major projects, these are big
forwarding issues, I think this is one of the issues where
Mitch Landrieu, who works directly for the President on project
delivery, is constantly saying, how can we get these agencies
to work together better.
I would say we have great awareness and great cooperation
with the resource agencies. Right now it is just a matter of
getting through some of the processes so we can get to these
decisions more quickly.
Senator Capito. Are you seeing the end result here yet of
this One Federal Decision?
Mr. Bhatt. I would say that I personally can think of
examples where we are actively engaging with resource agencies
proactively. We are talking about the timelines that have been
established. I have been in the role for 6 months, so I do not
know if I can say I have a project that went from start to
finish in that 2-year timeframe.
Senator Capito. Okay, so we need to keep following up on
that. Then last, you testified that FHWA is administering
nearly 900 awards, and this sort of follows onto that One
Federal Decision. I guess we could followup with you and your
staff more specifically, how many of those awards actually have
project grant agreements in place? Are we getting to the end
point here? You have a lot going on. We understand that. Are
the awards being made in a timely fashion to satisfy you? We
are hearing some blowback on that.
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Ranking Member. We are working very
closely with any of the award recipients to make sure that
there is a grant agreement in place, that we are going to get
them successfully. Some of these programs have construction
timeframes around obligation, or getting money obligated within
timeframes. We want to make sure. I am happy to provide you and
your staff with any timelines and updates on projects.
Senator Capito. Yes, we would like some specific data on
that following up on your opening statement. Thank you for
being here, and thank you for everything that you are doing. I
appreciate it.
Senator Carper. Thanks, Senator Capito.
I have a couple of questions, then right at the end I am
going to return to I-95 and any last thoughts you have,
especially in the wake of what I think the Governor of
Pennsylvania announced earlier today.
First, a question dealing with EV charging standards. This
week, Ford and General Motors announced that they will rely on
Tesla's charging technology for their electric vehicles as
well. Since those three companies together represent I think
about 75 percent of the EV sales in the U.S., this indicates
some industry consolidation around the North American charging
stations, or NACs.
Federal Highway Administration rules will require companies
seeking EV charging grants from the Bipartisan Infrastructure
Law to use an alternate standard via a combined charging
system, or CCS. How does the existence of multiple industry
standards affect the build-out of EV charging infrastructure?
What is the FHWA's role in facilitating convergence around a
single standard? Sort of a corollary to that is, additionally,
if a single charging technology emerges as an industry
standard, how will the Federal Highway Administration make sure
that it is open, accessible, and reliable for all EVs?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Chairman Carper. I think a couple of
things. I think that the public should recognize that the
coalescing of Ford, Tesla, and GM, kind of a new big three on
EVs, is in no small part due to the investments that have been
made in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and President Biden's
focus on this. It is great to see the private sector coming
together and working to get a standard. I think that is part of
our challenge as we are rolling out this new program, is we are
making live decisions and the world is moving and evolving as
we move forward. As somebody who has an electric vehicle that
has a CCS charger, I want to make sure I am able to charge it.
I think one of the things that we are reassured by is that
there are adapters that are available. If for some reason the
industry moves in a certain direction, this is not like a very
finite, like you either have to choose one or the other right
now. We are excited to see industry coming together and we will
work with our public sector partners to make sure we are in
concert as much as possible.
Senator Carper. Good. As an electric vehicle owner, I feel
the same sentiment that you have just expressed.
Climate title roll-out, the threat of climate change means
we must urgently reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We are trying
to do that and just as urgently ensure that our transportation
systems are resilient to the inevitable increase in natural
disasters that are already being witnessed across the Country.
I strongly supported the inclusion of an historic climate
title in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, including
discretionary grants to build out EV charging in communities
and to increase resilience.
I am somewhat concerned that these discretionary grant
programs have been slow to be implemented, and that no funds, I
am told no funds have been awarded yet. Does Federal Highway
Administration have the staff resources it needs to promptly
begin awarding grants and meet the urgency of the moment in
implementing the climate title?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Chairman Carper. One of the things I
have been very focused on is turning awards into projects since
I have come here. I know that Secretary Buttigieg is also very
focused on this. I will just give you one very specific
example. On CFI, we had initially had a deadline in May for
those communities to submit their applications because we got a
lot of requests for more time, because these communities wanted
to be successful in applying, we actually extended the deadline
to June 13th.
Some of it is us, there are a lot of new programs, Federal
Highways----
Senator Carper. That was yesterday. Just yesterday.
Mr. Bhatt. Yes. There is a lot going on. Yes, yesterday was
the deadline there but again, I can not stress this enough. I
think Federal Highway staff, since this law was enacted, have
been working around the clock to get all of these programs
stood up. We will continue to work like that but it is a
balance of, we want to move swiftly but also thoughtfully to
get to successful outcomes.
Senator Carper. I think you have in part answered this
question, but I am going to ask it anyway. How is Federal
Highway Administration working with States to ensure that
States prioritize investments in EV charging infrastructure?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Chairman Carper. Yes, I think we have
a robust discussion with our State partners around National
Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI), approving their plans,
looking at some of the exceptions that they have asked for as
they look to stand up these alternative fuel corridors. I think
just like when the interState system was built, we want to make
sure that this EV network is one that Americans can go coast to
coast, community to community, without fear of not being able
to charge.
Senator Carper. Good. Bus rapid transit, I remember the
first time I heard of this program, I thought, that is a clever
idea. I wish I had come up with that. The bus rapid transit
systems provide, as you know, fast, and in many cases reliable
high quality public transportation routes. They are being
adopted, I am happy to see, in cities across the Country and
offer a way to connect in part suburbs to job centers, and to
expand access to rail networks, among other things.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provides new eligibility
for States to use formula dollars to build bus rapid transit
systems. I think this may have been raised when I was out of
the room attending my other markup and business meeting in my
other committee. I missed this, but how is Federal Highway
Administration providing information to States about the
opportunities to build bus rapid transit systems? A corollary
to that, in general, how is Federal Highway Administration
coordinating with the Federal Transit Administration to
facilitate multi-modal investments?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Chairman Carper. When I was Delaware
Secretary, we also ran DTC, so I am very familiar with transit
operations. I would say that from a Federal Highway
perspective, we are constantly making States aware, and I think
States are aware of their eligibility for flexing highway
dollars for transit. We work very closely, Nuria and I, the FTA
Administrator, are often in close communication with the
Secretary's office.
I think we are bringing a multimodal approach more so than
any other Department of Transportation has had that focus.
Senator Carper. All right, thank you. We talked earlier
about the alarmingly high number of pedestrians who are dying
in this Country. I think the fatality level has reached its
highest level in decades, maybe 40 years or so. Those
fatalities increased during the pandemic, because despite an
overall decrease in driving, people just drove less, but we saw
and continue to see an increase.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law invests, as you know,
heavily in safety, particularly for pedestrians, for bicyclists
and other vulnerable road users. It also directs USDOT to
reconsider some of the manuals and procedures that govern road
design.
USDOT has also released its safety strategy that recognizes
the danger that high speeds and overbuilt road designs pose to
vulnerable road users. How has the USDOT safety strategy
informed Federal Highway Administration in the Administration's
implementation of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law? Is Federal
Highway Administration reconsidering design guides and
procedures to discourage higher speeds?
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Chairman Carper. I think that
Secretary Buttigieg often speaks about his focus on safety. The
National Roadway Safety Strategy incorporates safer design,
safer speeds into this. I think as the Federal Highway
Administrator, what I often tell our folks and our State
partners is, we need to differentiate our interState system
from where those interstates become arterials and those
arterials become city streets.
I spoke at NACTO earlier this year and we really want to
partner with communities who want to enact lower speed limits
in these cities. I think what we are learning globally is that
the cities that get the best outcomes and the safest cities are
the ones where people feel safe to walk and bike. We want to
make sure that we are not just thinking about moving cars and
trucks, but we are creating these places where people feel safe
to be active in their transportation.
Senator Carper. All right, thank you. I have just been
handed a notice that if I want to ask questions at the Finance
Committee hearing that is going on right now, I need to wrap
this up.
Before we do that, the Governor of Pennsylvania, Governor
Shapiro, made some announcements this morning that I think are
relevant to the discussion we are having today. If you could
share with us just briefly what he announced, and your reaction
to what he has announced, I would appreciate it.
Mr. Bhatt. Thank you, Chairman Carper. Yes, I have been in
the hearing so I am not sure specifically what he announced. It
was my understanding that he was going to detail the timeline
for the expected repair. I think that we were thinking it might
be several months. I think PennDOT has come up with an
expedited plan. I was part of those discussions yesterday.
I think it is going to be an innovative fix that will get
us to a resolution much quicker and restore traffic on I-95,
which is crippling that region right now. I am really grateful
for the innovation of PennDOT and the cooperation of
Philadelphia and our regional partners in the Federal Highway
Administration.
Senator Carper. Great. Any questions that you have not been
asked that you would like to be asked?
Mr. Bhatt. I have several, sir, but I want you to get to
your Finance Committee.
Senator Carper. My staff will appreciate that.
I just want to say what a joy it has been to sit here today
and to hear from you and to hear your responses to questions
that have been asked. For the other people in the room who may
not know this, I was given the opportunity to suggest folks to
the newly elected President a couple of years ago, people to
serve in his Administration. Shailen Bhatt was one of the
people I was especially pleased to recommend.
Sitting here listening to you today respond to questions in
a forthright and frank and knowledgeable way makes me very
happy. To your family who are sharing you with all of us across
the Country, give your wife and your two girls, tell them that
we appreciate their sharing their husband and dad with the rest
of us.
Let's see here. Some boilerplate that I have to mention. In
closing, I want to thank our witness, Administrator Shailen
Bhatt, for his time and testimony today. As we have heard
today, the Federal Highway Administration faces no shortage of
important work as it continues to implement the critical
programs that are authorized and funded by the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law and in part by the Inflation Reduction Act.
We thank you for your willingness to serve, to lead the
Federal Highway Administration at this pivotal time for
rebuilding America's transportation infrastructure. We ask that
you convey to the team that you lead across the Country our
thanks, bipartisan thanks for the good work that is being done.
Everything I do, I know I can do better. I think the same
is true for Federal Highway Administration. What does it say in
the Constitution? In order to form a more perfect union, in the
preamble. We are never going to be perfect, but that is our
goal, and we will continue to strive to do that. We appreciate
the spirit in which you lead this agency. Thank you.
Senators are going to be allowed to submit written
questions for the record through the close of business on
Wednesday, June 28th. We will compile those questions, that is
2 weeks from today, we will compile those questions, send them
to the Federal Highway Administration and ask that they be
responded to by you and your team by Wednesday, July 12th.
With that, this hearing is adjourned. Thank you so much.
[Whereupon, at 12:04 p.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
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