[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 16961]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




            H.R. 4864--SURFACE TRANSPORTATION EXTENSION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. THOMAS E. PETRI

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 21, 2004

  Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, we are here once again to extend funding for 
our nation's highway, transit and safety programs. This bill will 
complete funding for the fiscal year and ensure that state 
transportation programs continue to receive the necessary federal funds 
to maintain and build our nation's critical infrastructure.
  We are here today because we still are unable to reach an agreement 
on a level of spending that will meet the various demands that have 
been placed on us: provide growth in funding for all states; improve 
the rate of return for donor states; ensure that donee states do not 
take too much of a hit; provide significant funding to build new 
corridors to meet emerging trade traffic; provide help to states that 
are overwhelmed by massive but critical projects that each can reach up 
to $1 billion in costs; and produce a conference report that will be 
signed by the President who publicly supports a bill that is $20 
billion below the lowest of the two bills passed by this House and the 
Senate.
  This seems to be an impossible situation, but I believe House and 
Senate conferees have been making a good faith effort to resolve this 
impasse--but we are not there yet.
  I know that there is strong support in the Congress for a good, 
robust transportation program.
  We know that transportation spending from the Highway Trust Fund is a 
good investment that is necessary in order to maintain and build a 
first-class transportation network. This is investment that leads to 
economic growth and prosperity, that provides needed jobs, that assists 
in the development of transit projects that moves millions of people 
each day, and that improves unsafe conditions on our highways--thereby 
saving thousands of lives.
  So I urge passage of this bill so that States will continue to 
receive funds as we here in Washington press on in our efforts to 
ensure that we have a long-term program that meets our nation's 
transportation needs.

                          ____________________