[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 12 (Thursday, January 21, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E59-E60]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      INTRODUCTION OF THE ROAD USER CHARGE ADVANCEMENT ACT OF 2021

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. EARL BLUMENAUER

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, January 21, 2021

  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Madam Speaker, today I introduced the Road User 
Charge Advancement Act of 2021. This legislation passed the

[[Page E60]]

House last session in Section 5401 of the Moving Forward Act (H.R. 2, 
116th Cong.) and builds on the successful Surface Transportation 
Systems Funding Alternatives (STSFA) program to further enhance 
national understanding and competencies in collecting a road user 
charge.
  Increased vehicle fuel efficiency and a stagnant federal gas tax have 
encouraged increased demand on our transportation system without 
proportionally contributing to necessary maintenance and investment. In 
just a few years, the United States will no longer be able to finance 
our transportation system based on gallons of fuel consumed. Surface 
transportation faces significant funding challenges which have only 
deepened during the COVID-19 pandemic. The federal gas tax, unchanged 
since 1993, has lost more than 71 percent of its purchasing power due 
to inflation and fuel efficiency gains. As a result, Congress has 
transferred more than $153 billion in general fund revenues to prop up 
the Highway Trust Fund since 2008. Without new sources of revenue, or 
increasing existing sources, the total Highway Trust Fund shortfall is 
projected to reach nearly $190 billion in the next 10 years.
  Two national transportation study commissions, authorized in 2005, 
named a road usage charge based on vehicle miles travelled (VMT) as the 
most promising revenue alternative to the gas tax and the ``consensus 
choice'' for the future. Since then, California, Colorado, Delaware, 
Hawaii, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, Oregon, Utah, Washington, 
and Wyoming have operated or are operating pilot projects where drivers 
are charged for miles traveled as part of the STSFA program.
  The Road User Charge Advancement Act of 2021 would reauthorize the 
STSFA program through Fiscal Year 2025, increase the authorization 
amount to $35 million, and reduce the state match requirement to 
incentivize more states to participate. The legislation also includes 
annual reporting requirements to provide more frequent knowledge-
sharing opportunities and provides special consideration for states 
that are collecting revenues in their pilots.
  I look forward to working with my colleagues in the House and Senate 
to advance this legislation as part of a surface transportation 
reauthorization package and provide communities with longterm funding 
certainty to meet their infrastructure needs.

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