"The American business community is saying we don't see this as a tax. This is a user fee, and those people that use these roads and bridges ought to be contributing to the maintenance, upkeep and expansion where that needs to be done," Chamber president Tom Donohue told reporters at a news conference [image-nocss] before the lobbying blitz.
As a hundred business leaders headed to Capitol Hill, the Senate Environment & Public Works Committee approved a funding extension of only 18 months, which is being sought by the Obama administration. That's far short of the six years favored in the House by Transportation & Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar (D-Minn.), who sees the 18-month re-authorization as an ineffective band-aid.
And with Congress deep into debate over overhauling the nation's health care system, the Chamber is facing a tough fight over the transportation issues, said the report.
As the expiration of funding for the nation's surface transportation programs approaches, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce led more than 100 business leaders, association executives and local chambers of commerce members from 28 states to Capitol Hill for a "Transportation is Your Business" fly-in. They delivered a message to Congress that investment in the nation's highways, bridges, and public transportation systems must not be delayed.
"The Congress and Administration need to make America's crumbling transportation infrastructure a priority," said Thomas J. Donohue, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. "If done right, comprehensive highway and public transportation will create jobs, speed commerce, enhance safety, and better serve the American people."
The Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) passed by President George Bush in 2005 authorizes surface transportation spending for a six-year period and is scheduled to expire on September 30. To increase federal transportation dollars, the Chamber is calling on Congress to explore all funding options, including raising user fees, encouraging private investment and creating an infrastructure bank.
The Chamber also supports safeguarding money collected from gasoline taxes and other fees for transportation-specific projects as well as cutting red tape associated with those projects.
"The Administration and Congress included vital funds for transportation in the stimulus package, but the job isn't done yet," Donohue said.
As part of an intensified push, the Chamber is conducting a comprehensive advertising, grassroots and lobbying campaign in support of SAFETEA-LU reauthorization. The effort includes advertisements on buses and commuter trains, and in magazines and on websites; and opinion pieces in local newspapers.
Click hereto listen to a webcast that contains Donahue's remarks.
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