[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 4]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 4851]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         THE BRIDGE TO JOBS ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JANICE HAHN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, April 9, 2013

  Ms. HAHN. Mr. Speaker, as every American knows, we have a jobs crisis 
in this country. While unemployment has improved within the past year, 
it is still strangling our economy. Approximately 40 percent of jobless 
Americans--who lost their jobs through no fault of their own--have been 
out of work for six months or longer, and the longer they wait, the 
harder it is for them to find jobs. The fact of the matter is that we 
will not see robust economic growth again until we put Americans back 
to work.
  We also have an infrastructure crisis. According to Transportation 
for America, there are 69,223 bridges that have been classified as 
``structurally deficient'' by the Federal Highway Administration. 
Leaving these bridges in their current state of disrepair poses a grave 
threat not only to our safety, but also to our economy. As the 
President noted last year, ``Our aging transportation infrastructure 
costs American businesses and families about $130 billion a year . . . 
and if we don't act now, it could cost America hundreds of billions of 
dollars and hundreds of thousands of jobs by the end of the decade.'' 
Additionally, studies have shown that our crumbling infrastructure 
threatens our competitive edge in the world economy. As the Washington 
Post reported last summer, if nothing is done to improve our 
infrastructure, ``U.S. businesses would pay an added $430 billion in 
transportation costs, household incomes would fall by more than $7,000, 
and U.S. exports will fall by $28 billion.'' Mr. Speaker, we can't 
afford to wait until the end of the decade; we need action now.
  Alleviating both of these crises is not a mutually exclusive 
endeavor. That's why I've introduced the ``Bridge to Jobs Act,'' a 
much-needed ``win-win'' for the American economy and public safety. The 
act provides states with grants to put Americans back to work by 
repairing crumbling bridges. Not only will this legislation put 
Americans back to work and bolster our ailing economy, it will also 
ensure the safety of the millions who use these bridges each and every 
day. I urge my colleagues to support this crucial investment in our 
workforce, our economy, and our safety.

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