[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 7]
[House]
[Page 9604]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         TRANSPORTATION FUNDING

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, the strange kaleidoscope of this 
congressional session began with the proposed shutdown of Homeland 
Security but moved on to the bipartisan action to fix the vexing SGR-
Medicare funding formula, the so-called ``doc fix'' to prevent dramatic 
cuts to providers.
  Yes, it is still hard to overcome deep divisions, philosophical 
difference, and some real serious politics. The heated rhetoric and 
convoluted voting on the recent trade package is the latest example. 
Wouldn't it be great if we could take a step back and find ways to 
unite us to solve a major problem?
  Well, we have got a major problem that is staring us in the face 
right now. We are in the midst of the 33rd short-term transportation 
funding extension that is a result of our inability to pay for 2015 
infrastructure with 1993 dollars. That is because of our inability to 
raise the gas tax since 1993.
  The demands for transportation solutions grow, and the harm inflicted 
on families occurs every day. It costs them over $300 a year just in 
damage to their cars from road maintenance that has fallen apart. We 
are paying a $125-billion-a-year penalty for congestion.
  Americans, make no mistake, are paying the price for this 
dysfunction, and the people who are partners at the State and local 
level and in the private sector are having great difficulty doing their 
part without the certainty of the Federal partnership that has been the 
bedrock, that has been the foundation of national transportation policy 
since President Eisenhower.
  Now, there is a little hint of sunshine here because this week, on 
Wednesday, we will be having the first hearing on transportation 
finance since my Republican friends took control of Congress 56 months 
ago.
  What if we took advantage of that daylight to expand the scope of the 
discussion? What if we were able to have at the same witness table the 
president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Tom Donohue, and the 
president of the AFL-CIO, Richard Trumka, who don't much agree on 
anything, but they are united in their firm belief that raising the gas 
tax, getting the transportation funding to rebuild and renew America, 
is absolutely essential?
  We could be joined by people who understand that hundreds of 
thousands of family-wage jobs would be possible if we met our 
transportation obligations.
  We could have representatives from State and local government, 
transit agencies, the environmental community, safety advocates all 
joined at the same table. We could have the eloquence of Governor Bill 
Graves, who is currently president of the American Trucking 
Association, but he was Republican Governor of Kansas, who raised the 
gas tax not once, but twice. He could be joined by the American 
Automobile Association, which has come out strongly in favor of a gas 
tax to be able to meet the needs of the motoring public. Why wouldn't 
we want those people there?
  We could invite State legislators from six very red Republican 
States--Idaho, Utah, Georgia, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Iowa--that 
all raised the gas tax this year. They didn't just talk about it; they 
acted. Six red States raising the gas tax already in 2015.
  I am optimistic that we can capitalize on the glimmers of life we are 
seeing. If we can just listen to the people at the State and local 
level, the private sector, organized labor, people who build, maintain, 
and use our transportation system, they could be part of that 
deliberative process. I am confident that we, in Congress, could 
develop a united front on an issue that has been controversial in the 
past but is no longer.
  When people step up, when they accept responsibility and work 
cooperatively, we can do what was done in Idaho, Georgia, Utah, Iowa, 
South Dakota, and Nebraska. Congress can do that. And after all the 
acrimony and bad feeling and partisan division that has lingered, 
wouldn't this be the right time to do so?

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