[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 5]
[House]
[Page 6548]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    TOLLING WILL CRIPPLE OUR ECONOMY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Fortenberry). The Chair recognizes the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Thompson) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, the United States 
Department of Transportation yesterday delivered to Congress a draft 
highway reauthorization which proposes to remove the prohibition on 
tolling existing capacity on interstate highways.
  As my colleagues are aware, the interstate highway system was created 
to enhance the flow of goods and services throughout the country.

                              {time}  1030

  These investments have served to improve our economy and the lives of 
our citizens, while allowing America to remain competitive in a global 
market.
  Plain and simple, tolling existing capacity will do nothing more than 
cripple our economy. In fact, Mr. Speaker, any attempt to remove the 
prohibitions on tolling interstate highways must be highly scrutinized.
  In my home State of Pennsylvania, in 2007, a scheme was put together 
to toll Interstate 80. This was a prime example of a betrayal of public 
trust, where the Commonwealth, under then-Governor Rendell, aimed to 
use toll grants on other projects unassociated with the interstate.
  Mr. Speaker, tolling can work for new capacity or to mitigate 
congestion by providing alternative lanes of travel, but it must be 
done in a transparent manner. Pennsylvania's plan was not crafted for 
the public good, but to cover up for a history of highway mismanagement 
and cronyism throughout the bureaucracy.
  Now, I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of 
the aisle on finding a fiscally responsible way to maintain investments 
in critical transportation infrastructure projects across the country.
  As we move forward on a new highway reauthorization, let us restore 
the public trust, not further erode it. The American people deserve as 
much.

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