[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 117 (Friday, September 24, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9668-S9669]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   STATUS OF THE TRANSPORTATION BILL

  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I want to say a few words about the state 
of the transportation bill. That bill expired a year ago, and we have 
been operating on short-term extensions ever since. The delay has 
denied us the opportunity to create over 100,000 jobs and has led to 
continuing uncertainty in the States as they try to make contract and 
construction decisions without knowing what funding will be available. 
Our states, our communities, and our infrastructure deserve better.
  It is not as if there have been no efforts to pass a new and stronger 
transportation bill. The Senate-passed transportation bill was a model 
of bipartisanship. It met the needs of States like South Dakota, which 
have a sparse population, but have a large geography and many miles of 
roads. Likewise, it ensures that the more populated States were treated 
fairly.
  In the Senate bill, we were able to reach an agreement that worked 
for everyone. Our bill not only treated States fairly, but it treated 
transit fairly. There has often been a struggle between highways and 
transit, and the Senate bill struck a good balance. More importantly, 
it was a bill that did right by America's families, making critical 
investments in our infrastructure, and creating nearly 2 million jobs 
in the process.
  The one area where we were unable to reach agreement was on the rail 
provisions, and I am hopeful that we can work to remedy that as we move 
forward. Having a dependable and affordable rail system to transport 
goods, including agricultural commodities, is critical to our Nation.
  It is clear to me that despite the broad bipartisan agreement we were 
able to reach in the Senate, the rejection of that agreement by the 
President and some of the House majority leadership means that we are 
being denied the opportunity to debate and pass a bipartisan 
transportation bill.
  Senators Bond and Reid have suggested that we give some certainty to 
the States by ensuring that they will have a steady funding stream for 
the next 6 months. Senator Shelby and Senator Sarbanes, our leaders on 
the Banking Committee and on transit issues, agree. I, too, think that 
this is, unfortunately, the best course of action given the situation 
in which we find ourselves. And so I am hopeful that the majority 
leader will take up the bill early next week.
  The reason for not completing this bill is clearly over the question 
of resources. The administration has not been willing to consider any 
bill that is anything other than their proposed $256 billion. In fact, 
the President threatened to veto both the House and Senate-passed bills 
because they contained

[[Page S9669]]

greater levels of investment. And yet, to invest significantly less 
than the Senate was willing to invest fails to meet the goals I just 
discussed: to treat all States and modes of transportation fairly.
  That does not mean that the Senate level is the only level and that a 
long-term bill cannot be completed at a lower investment level. But I 
have not seen, nor do I believe that anyone has seen, a willingness to 
seriously discuss that possibility.
  Thus, we find ourselves in the unfortunate position of once again 
being up against the end of another extension. Rather than keeping 
States in the dark about their future, it seems to me that the 
bipartisan approach of Senators Bond, Reid, Shelby and Sarbanes makes 
sense. In fact, several transportation groups have also called for a 
longer-term extension. As I said, I hope and urge the majority leader 
to take up the Bond-Reid transportation extension early next week.
  Transportation has, by and large, been a bipartisan endeavor. After 
all, our economy, our infrastructure, and our Nation's families need 
and deserve a good transportation bill, one that will create good jobs 
and provide the investments in our Nation's infrastructure that are so 
desperately needed. I am hopeful that we can do better, that we will 
renew our efforts and continue to work as hard as possible to find the 
bipartisan solution that has been so elusive. And I hope that we can 
reach that compromise sooner rather than later.
  I yield the floor.

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