Congress has acted to stave off an impending shutdown of federal highway and transit funding by approving a five-month extension of the current law, the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century. The final congressional step on the short-term extension came on Sept. 26 when the Senate passed the measure by unanimous consent. The bill now goes to President Bush for his signature.
TEA-21 expires on Sept. 30 and the Federal Highway Administration will be unable to reimburse states for road funding obligations after that date.