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Rep. Blumenauer: Swift Action Must Be Taken on Looming Transportation Funding Crisis


Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–May 11, 2015.  Today, the first day of Infrastructure Week, Representative Earl Blumenauer (OR-03) highlighted the importance of infrastructure to our communities and the urgent need for Congress to find a long-term solution to the looming transportation funding crisis.

“Investing in our roads and bridges creates good jobs and is essential to making our communities more efficient, livable, walkable, bikeable and accessible by transit,” said Representative Blumenauer. “Unfortunately, due to short-sighted U.S. policy, America is falling apart and behind. Congress is once again stalling on taking action to fully reauthorize the Highway Trust Fund – the lifeblood of America’s transportation infrastructure. This is unacceptable. We need a sustainable, long-term solution to this looming transportation funding crisis, and I urge my colleagues to act swiftly and thoughtfully to ensure our families are safer, healthier and more economically secure.”

This year, Representative Blumenauer introduced H.R. 680, the Update, Promote, and Develop America’s Transportation Essentials (UPDATE) Act, which would phase in a 15 cent per gallon tax increase over three years on gasoline and diesel to provide $210 billion in the next decade. Additionally, in an effort to work towards replacing the gas tax entirely, Representative Blumenauer has also introduced H.R. 679, the Road Usage Charge Pilot Program Act, to establish a road usage charge pilot program to study mileage-based fee systems.

Source: blumenauer.house.gov


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