[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 50 (Wednesday, April 29, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E696]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    BUILDING EFFICIENT SURFACE TRANSPORTATION AND EQUITY ACT OF 1998

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                               speech of

                          HON. SAXBY CHAMBLISS

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, April 1, 1998

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2400) to 
     authorize funds for Federal-aid highways, highway safety 
     programs, and transit programs, and for other purposes:

  Mr. CHAMBLISS. Mr. Chairman, I rise today to applaud H.R. 2400, 
Building Efficient Surface Transportation and Equity Act (BESTEA), and 
specifically the section that streamlines the environmental review 
process for highway construction projects.
  The National Environmental Protection Act of 1969 (NEPA) requires 
that an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) be prepared for any major 
federal undertaking that affects the environment. As various factors 
are considered, additional federal agencies become involved and 
additional reviews are proposed. Each review takes significant amounts 
of time, requires lengthy studies, and delays projects even further. 
While I support regulations which protect our environment, we must 
streamline the process to avoid the costly and timely delays that have 
affected so many projects. This bill will help keep projects in my 
district on track, streamlining this cumbersome approach and allow them 
to be completed in a timely, efficient manner.
  Since the 1970's, local, state, and federal officials have been 
working in my Congressional District to provide an additional crossing 
of the Ocmulgee River for the city of Macon, Georgia. While the 
environmental process has yet to determine the route for this project, 
this much-needed fifth crossing would relieve the current traffic 
congestion that exists on the four bridges currently in Macon. In 
addition to easing Macon's traffic problems, the crossing could be used 
to link up middle Georgia with a statewide corridor which would connect 
Macon with the cities of Augusta and Columbus.
  The bill before us today take great strides to remedy the 
bureaucratic problems we have encountered in my district and many 
others. This bill requires all involved federal agencies to be clearly 
identified at the outset and a reasonable time-line to be established 
and followed. All environmental reviews are then conducted concurrently 
rather than sequentially, moving the process along in an expedient 
manner without reinventing the wheel over or compromising important 
concerns. This legislative provision will help streamline one of the 
most exhaustive and burdensome processes in the country and I applaud 
its inclusion in BESTEA.

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