[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 50 (Wednesday, April 29, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E708-E709]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    BUILDING EFFICIENT SURFACE TRANSPORTATION AND EQUITY ACT OF 1998

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. STENY H. HOYER

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, April 27, 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. HOYER. Mr. Chairman, I rise today to state my disappointment that 
this legislation contains no legislative language authorizing 
Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Program (CMAQ) funds to be 
utilized for the operation and construction of telecommuting centers.
  In 1991 ISTEA broke new ground by allowing CMAQ funding to be used to 
study the benefits of telecommuting centers. These centers are 
presently funded by the General Services Administration and allow 
federal employees to use an alternative workplace in lieu of traveling 
to their main offices several times a month. This concept, which has 
been tested in Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary's counties, has been very 
successful.
  I remember vividly speaking to a young woman about the impact of 
telecommuting about a year ago. She was the mother of two small 
children who lived about an hour and a half outside of Washington. 
Every morning she got up before 5 a.m. in order to get her children to 
daycare and still be at work by 8 a.m. On a good day, her morning 
commute was about 90 minutes. However, if there was an accident or bad 
weather it could take her two or more hours to get to work. After 
getting two sleepy children ready for the day and fighting traffic she 
told me that she often felt exhausted before she even started her job 
as a computer programmer.
  Mr. Speaker, there is a telecommuting center located not far from her 
home in Lexington Park. A few times a month she works out of the 
telecommuting center instead of driving up to Washington. What is the 
impact? For starters there is one less car on the highway. One less car 
equals less congestion on the crowded Washington metropolitan corridor 
and a decrease in air pollution. She is also more productive at her job 
as a programmer because she is better rested and less stressed, she 
gets to spend more time with her children, and she saves money, gas, 
and wear and tear on her car with a shorter commute.
  Mr. Speaker, telecommuting makes a real difference in the lives of 
constituents in my district. There is a need for additional centers in 
Maryland and the rest of the country and I hope that H.R. 2400 will be 
amended in Conference to allow CMAQ funds to be used for the design, 
construction, and operation of telecommuting centers.

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