A $325-billion, six-year highway- transit authorization has been rolled out in the House, a step that construction officials welcome. But the proposal—from Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) and the panel’s top Democrat, Peter DeFazio (Ore.)—has at best only three years of actual funding. It will be up to the Ways and Means Committee to find new revenue to close that gap.
The measure, unveiled on Oct. 16, is expected to clear the Transportation panel on a strong vote, but floor action probably won’t come by Oct. 29, when the latest transportation stopgap lapses. “We’re definitely looking at one more extension—but short, very short,” says Jay Hansen, National Asphalt Pavement Association executive vice president. He thinks that stopgap should run only into mid-November. “Beyond that,” he adds, “you’re getting too close to the Dec. 11 deadline, when the federal government funding runs out.”