[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 190 (Thursday, October 28, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H5962-H5965]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
FURTHER SURFACE TRANSPORTATION EXTENSION ACT OF 2021
Mr. DeFAZIO. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 5763) to provide an extension of Federal-aid highway,
highway safety, and transit programs, and for other purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 5763
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Further Surface
Transportation Extension Act of 2021''.
SEC. 2. AMENDMENT TO THE EXTENSION END DATE.
Section 2(2) of the Surface Transportation Extension Act of
2021 (Public Law 117-44) is amended by striking ``October 31,
2021'' and inserting ``December 3, 2021''.
SEC. 3. AMENDMENT FOR FEDERAL EMPLOYEE COMPENSATION FOLLOWING
HIGHWAY TRUST FUND EXPIRATION.
Section 108(b) of the Surface Transportation Extension Act
of 2021 (Public Law 117-44) is amended by striking ``that
begins'' and all that follows through the period at the end
and inserting the following: ``that begins on--
``(1) October 1, 2021, and ends on or before the date of
enactment of this Act; or
[[Page H5963]]
``(2) November 1, 2021, and ends on or before the date of
enactment of the Further Surface Transportation Extension Act
of 2021.''.
SEC. 4. EXTENSION OF EXPENDITURE AUTHORITY FOR THE HIGHWAY
TRUST FUND, SPORT FISH RESTORATION AND BOATING
TRUST FUND, AND LEAKING UNDERGROUND STORAGE
TANK TRUST FUND.
(a) Highway Trust Fund.--Section 9503 of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986 is amended--
(1) in subsections (b)(6)(B), (c)(1), and (e)(3) by
striking ``November 1, 2021'' and inserting ``December 4,
2021''; and
(2) by striking ``Surface Transportation Extension Act of
2021'' each place it appears and inserting ``Further Surface
Transportation Extension Act of 2021''.
(b) Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund.--Section
9504 of such Code is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)(2) by striking ``Surface
Transportation Extension Act of 2021'' each place it appears
and inserting ``Further Surface Transportation Extension Act
of 2021''; and
(2) in subsection (d)(2) by striking ``November 1, 2021''
and inserting ``December 4, 2021''.
(c) Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund.--Section
9508(e)(2) of such Code is amended by striking ``November 1,
2021'' and inserting ``December 4, 2021''.
(d) Special Rule for Amendments.--On the date of enactment
of H.R. 3684 (117th Congress)--
(1) subsections (a), (b), and (c), the amendments made by
such subsections, section 201 of the Surface Transportation
Extension Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-44), and the amendments
made by such section shall cease to be effective;
(2) the text of the laws amended by subsections (a), (b),
and (c) of this section and section 201 of the Surface
Transportation Extension Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-44)
shall revert back so as to read as the text read on September
30, 2021; and
(3) the amendments made by H.R. 3684 (117th Congress) shall
be executed as if this section and section 201 of the Surface
Transportation Extension Act had not been enacted.
(e) Conforming Amendment.--Section 201 of the Surface
Transportation Extension Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-44) is
amended by striking subsection (d).
SEC. 5. PRIOR ENACTED AUTHORIZATION.
If H.R. 3684 (117th Congress) is enacted before the date of
enactment of this Act, this Act shall not take effect and the
provisions of this Act shall not be executed.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Oregon (Mr. DeFazio) and the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Graves) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Oregon.
General Leave
Mr. DeFAZIO. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks
and include extraneous material on H.R. 5763.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Oregon?
There was no objection.
Mr. DeFAZIO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5763, the Further Surface
Transportation Extension Act of 2021.
Here we are again, calling up yet another short-term extension of
Federal highway, transit, highway safety, motor carrier, research, and
transportation financing programs.
As I stated when the House took up the first extension on October 1,
the House of Representatives did its work last summer, which included a
5-year authorization of surface programs, well in advance of the need
for any extensions. And the Senate did later pass a 5-year
authorization.
We haven't yet found a path forward for both Chambers to pass the
same version of the bill, but we need to act immediately to be certain
we don't have a lapse in authorization. There are adequate funds in the
highway trust fund to cover this extension. No additional funds will be
necessary.
If we don't, on October 31, 3,700 employees will again receive
furlough notices that they cannot report to work on November 1, or have
to work without pay, with a temporary shutdown of those programs.
The Federal Highway Administration won't be able to provide any new
funding to States, the District, or territories. They will be able to
continue reimbursing, but a lot of States are beginning--they have
initiatives and applications pending for new programs, and all those
would be set aside and delayed.
The Federal Transit Administration won't be able to issue new funding
to 1,300 transit grantees that rely on Federal grants to fund
construction; buy vehicles and equipment, an ongoing process; and, in
some cases, pay for operating costs. The FTA can continue to make
payments for grants issued before October 1--again, not adequate
looking at future needs.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration cannot award new
grants, and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration must stop
issuing new motor carrier safety grants.
And the Office of the Secretary will not be able to make any further
TIFIA loans.
The Further Surface Transportation Extension Act of 2021 will allow
the Department of Transportation to restart operations of programs
funded by the highway trust fund through December 3, 2021, which will
be a momentous day around here. It also authorizes DOT to provide
backpay for employees in the event of a temporary shutdown.
I urge my colleagues to support this extension which will help
provide additional time to work through the final resolution of a long-
term surface transportation bill.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Madam Speaker, reluctantly, I am going to support yet another short-
term extension of the highway program. Unfortunately, this simply
continues to put our State departments of transportation and
transportation stakeholders in a very tough position, and they really
deserve more than this.
Let me be clear: The Speaker's partisan process is what has led us to
this point, and this predicament highlights more than ever the need for
us to be working across the aisle--and across the building, for that
matter.
Nearly a month ago, we were here in virtually the same position,
having the same conversations about the need for a highway extension
because the Speaker is holding the infrastructure bill hostage for her
real priority. And we all know what that is. It is a massive,
multitrillion-dollar tax-and-spend wish list.
This should not be how it is, tying the hands of an entire Congress
to pass a socialist agenda that folks in America just simply don't
support. Infrastructure has never been this way. Bipartisanship has
always been the formula for success on infrastructure, and that hasn't
changed. It hasn't changed any at all.
While this process may have started out as a bipartisan piece of
legislation in the Senate, the Speaker made darn sure that as soon as
the bill was sent across the Capitol, it immediately was tainted with
her ultraliberal, partisan agenda.
In my 20 years in Congress, I have supported all three highway bills
that have been signed into law. All of them were bipartisan, all of
them under Republican chairmen, all of them signed into law by both
Democrat and Republican Presidents.
House Republicans have stood ready and committed to participate in a
truly bipartisan process that involves input from both the House and
the Senate, not just one Chamber, and both parties. We were ready to
come to the negotiation table.
Earlier this year, House Republicans warned that a partisan path
would put us in a position like this, and here we are.
The chairman is absolutely right. Passing this extension is the right
thing to do. The last thing we need, though, is a series of short-term
extensions. A longer extension is a much-preferred path because it
allows our States to plan with certainty.
Multiple short-term extensions are extremely detrimental to the
States. They are detrimental to the stakeholders and the jobs that
support these critical projects and programs.
Extensions mean leaving the States with uncertainty to fix, to
maintain, to upgrade roads and bridges. And you can't plan multiyear
infrastructure and highway projects with the guarantee of only a few
weeks of funding at any one time.
So it is time to get back to what works, and that is bipartisanship
on both sides of this building. That is the key to success when it
comes to infrastructure.
I urge my colleagues to support this short-term extension and support
our
[[Page H5964]]
States' transportation programs. However, next time around, we really
need to consider a longer term extension. It is what is best for the
States.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. DeFAZIO. Madam Speaker, I have no additional speakers, and if the
gentleman is prepared to close, I would be prepared to close.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of
my time.
Again, it is unfortunate that we are here today as Democrats continue
negotiating their partisan reconciliation proposal while an
infrastructure bill sits. It sits idly and serves nothing more than
those partisan programs.
This is nothing more than a Trojan horse, Madam Speaker, and it is
being used for its popularity to get votes for the progressive wish
list. I believe our State DOTs and our State transportation
stakeholders, every one of them deserve better.
I hardly think that this short-term extension gives certainty to
those folks, and I recognize that what is even worse is the fact that
there is no certainty whatsoever.
Given that, reluctantly, I do urge support of this short-term
extension with the expectation that a longer term extension will be
needed the next time that we are here doing this once again.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. DeFAZIO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Madam Speaker, just to reiterate for colleagues that may be
listening, this extension goes till December 3. There are adequate
funds in the highway trust fund to fund all the regular programs. This
will be at current authorization levels.
It will allow States to move forward and propose new highway and
bridge projects. It will allow transit agencies to go ahead and acquire
new equipment and make other necessary repairs or improvements to their
systems.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration will be at full operating and
full funding, so there will be no lapse should we pass this now. I urge
an ``aye'' vote.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Oregon (Mr. DeFazio) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 5763.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and
nays.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 3(s) of House Resolution
8, the yeas and nays are ordered.
The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 358,
nays 59, not voting 14, as follows:
[Roll No. 339]
YEAS--358
Adams
Aderholt
Aguilar
Allen
Allred
Amodei
Armstrong
Arrington
Auchincloss
Axne
Babin
Bacon
Balderson
Banks
Barragan
Bass
Beatty
Bentz
Bera
Bergman
Beyer
Bice (OK)
Bishop (GA)
Blumenauer
Blunt Rochester
Bonamici
Bost
Bourdeaux
Bowman
Boyle, Brendan F.
Brady
Brooks
Brown
Brownley
Buchanan
Bucshon
Budd
Burgess
Bush
Bustos
Butterfield
Calvert
Carbajal
Cardenas
Carl
Carson
Carter (GA)
Carter (LA)
Carter (TX)
Cartwright
Casten
Castor (FL)
Castro (TX)
Chabot
Cheney
Chu
Cicilline
Clark (MA)
Clarke (NY)
Cleaver
Cloud
Clyburn
Cohen
Cole
Connolly
Cooper
Correa
Costa
Courtney
Craig
Crawford
Crenshaw
Crist
Crow
Cuellar
Curtis
Davids (KS)
Davidson
Davis, Danny K.
Davis, Rodney
Dean
DeFazio
DeGette
DeLauro
DelBene
Delgado
Demings
DeSaulnier
Deutch
Diaz-Balart
Dingell
Doggett
Donalds
Doyle, Michael F.
Duncan
Dunn
Ellzey
Emmer
Escobar
Eshoo
Espaillat
Estes
Evans
Feenstra
Ferguson
Fischbach
Fitzpatrick
Fleischmann
Fletcher
Fortenberry
Foster
Foxx
Frankel, Lois
Franklin, C. Scott
Gallego
Garamendi
Garbarino
Garcia (CA)
Garcia (IL)
Garcia (TX)
Gimenez
Golden
Gomez
Gonzales, Tony
Gonzalez (OH)
Gonzalez, Vicente
Gottheimer
Granger
Graves (LA)
Graves (MO)
Green, Al (TX)
Griffith
Grijalva
Grothman
Guthrie
Hagedorn
Harder (CA)
Hartzler
Hayes
Herrell
Herrera Beutler
Higgins (LA)
Higgins (NY)
Hill
Himes
Hinson
Houlahan
Hoyer
Hudson
Huffman
Huizenga
Issa
Jackson Lee
Jacobs (CA)
Jacobs (NY)
Jayapal
Jeffries
Johnson (GA)
Johnson (LA)
Johnson (OH)
Johnson (SD)
Johnson (TX)
Jones
Joyce (OH)
Joyce (PA)
Kahele
Kaptur
Katko
Keating
Keller
Kelly (IL)
Kelly (PA)
Khanna
Kildee
Kilmer
Kim (CA)
Kim (NJ)
Kinzinger
Kirkpatrick
Krishnamoorthi
Kuster
Kustoff
LaHood
LaMalfa
Lamb
Langevin
Larsen (WA)
Larson (CT)
Latta
LaTurner
Lawrence
Lawson (FL)
Lee (CA)
Lee (NV)
Leger Fernandez
Letlow
Levin (CA)
Levin (MI)
Lieu
Lofgren
Long
Lowenthal
Lucas
Luetkemeyer
Luria
Lynch
Mace
Malliotakis
Maloney, Carolyn B.
Maloney, Sean
Mann
Manning
Matsui
McBath
McCarthy
McCaul
McCollum
McEachin
McGovern
McNerney
Meeks
Meijer
Meng
Meuser
Mfume
Miller (WV)
Miller-Meeks
Moolenaar
Mooney
Moore (UT)
Moore (WI)
Morelle
Moulton
Mrvan
Murphy (FL)
Murphy (NC)
Nadler
Napolitano
Neal
Neguse
Newhouse
Newman
Norcross
Nunes
O'Halleran
Obernolte
Ocasio-Cortez
Omar
Owens
Pallone
Palmer
Panetta
Pappas
Pascrell
Payne
Pence
Perlmutter
Perry
Peters
Pfluger
Pingree
Pocan
Porter
Pressley
Price (NC)
Quigley
Raskin
Reschenthaler
Rice (NY)
Rice (SC)
Rodgers (WA)
Rogers (AL)
Rogers (KY)
Rose
Ross
Rouzer
Ruiz
Ruppersberger
Rush
Rutherford
Ryan
Salazar
Sanchez
Sarbanes
Scalise
Scanlon
Schakowsky
Schiff
Schneider
Schrader
Schrier
Scott (VA)
Scott, David
Sewell
Sherman
Sherrill
Sires
Slotkin
Smith (MO)
Smith (NE)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (WA)
Smucker
Soto
Spanberger
Speier
Stansbury
Stanton
Stauber
Steel
Stefanik
Steil
Stevens
Stewart
Strickland
Suozzi
Swalwell
Takano
Tenney
Thompson (CA)
Thompson (MS)
Thompson (PA)
Titus
Tlaib
Tonko
Torres (CA)
Torres (NY)
Trahan
Trone
Underwood
Upton
Valadao
Van Drew
Van Duyne
Vargas
Veasey
Vela
Velazquez
Wagner
Walberg
Walorski
Waltz
Wasserman Schultz
Waters
Watson Coleman
Webster (FL)
Welch
Westerman
Wexton
Wild
Williams (GA)
Williams (TX)
Wilson (FL)
Wittman
Womack
Yarmuth
Young
Zeldin
NAYS--59
Baird
Biggs
Bilirakis
Bishop (NC)
Boebert
Buck
Burchett
Cammack
Case
Cawthorn
Cline
Clyde
Comer
DesJarlais
Fallon
Fitzgerald
Fulcher
Gaetz
Gallagher
Gibbs
Gohmert
Gooden (TX)
Gosar
Green (TN)
Greene (GA)
Guest
Harshbarger
Hern
Hollingsworth
Horsford
Jackson
Jordan
Kelly (MS)
Lamborn
Loudermilk
Malinowski
Massie
Mast
McClain
McClintock
McHenry
Miller (IL)
Moore (AL)
Mullin
Nehls
Norman
Palazzo
Phillips
Posey
Reed
Schweikert
Scott, Austin
Sessions
Spartz
Steube
Taylor
Timmons
Weber (TX)
Wilson (SC)
NOT VOTING--14
Barr
Good (VA)
Harris
Hice (GA)
Kind
Lesko
McKinley
Rosendale
Roy
Roybal-Allard
Simpson
Tiffany
Turner
Wenstrup
{time} 1911
Ms. HERRELL and Messrs. GROTHMAN, ARRINGTON, and CLOUD changed their
vote from ``nay'' to ``yea.''
So (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and
the bill was passed.
The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
Members Recorded Pursuant to House Resolution 8, 117th Congress
Armstrong (Resch
enthaler)
Baird (Resch
enthaler)
Barragan (Clarke (NY))
Boebert (Cammack)
Bowman (Ocasio-Cortez)
Buchanan (Bilirakis)
Calvert (Garcia (CA))
Cardenas (Gomez)
Cohen (Beyer)
Cuellar (Costa)
Curtis (Owens)
DeSaulnier (Beyer)
Deutch (Rice (NY))
Doggett (Raskin)
Doyle, Michael F. (Cartwright)
Duncan (Rice (SC))
Evans (Mfume)
Fleischmann (Bilirakis)
Frankel, Lois (Clark (MA))
Fulcher (Johnson (OH))
Garbarino (Joyce (OH))
Gimenez (Waltz)
Gosar (Greene (GA))
Green (TN) (Resch
enthaler)
Hagedorn (Carl)
Harshbarger (Owens)
Hartzler (Bucshon)
Houlahan (Crow)
Hudson (McHenry)
Issa (Garcia (CA))
Jacobs (NY) (Resch
enthaler)
[[Page H5965]]
Johnson (SD) (Resch
enthaler)
Joyce (PA) (Keller)
Kaptur (Dingell)
Kinzinger (Fitzpatrick)
Kirkpatrick (Stanton)
LaHood (Gonzalez (OH))
Lawson (FL) (Soto)
Lieu (Beyer)
Luetkemeyer (Long)
McEachin (Wexton)
Meng (Jeffries)
Miller (WV) (Resch
enthaler)
Moore (UT) (Owens)
Norman (Rice (SC))
Nunes (Garcia (CA))
Obernolte (Pfluger)
Pascrell (Pallone)
Payne (Pallone)
Porter (Wexton)
Reed (Upton)
Rogers (KY) (Resch
enthaler)
Rush (Underwood)
Schakowsky (Garcia (IL))
Sires (Pallone)
Smith (WA) (Courtney)
Smucker (Keller)
Speier (Scanlon)
Steube (Franklin, C. Scott)
Stewart (Owens)
Swalwell (Allred)
Takano (Cicilline)
Thompson (PA) (Resch
enthaler)
Timmons (Resch
enthaler)
Valadao (Meijer)
Wagner (McHenry)
Walorski (Banks)
Watson Coleman (Pallone)
Wilson (FL) (Hayes)
Wilson (SC) (Rice (SC))
=========================== NOTE ===========================
October 28, 2021, on page H5965, the following appeared:
Swalwell (Allred) Takano (Cicilline) Thompson (Reschenthaler)
The online version has been corrected to read: Swalwell (Allred)
Takano (Cicilline) Thompson (PA) (Reschenthaler)
========================= END NOTE =========================
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