This week, 51·çÁ÷ of America President and CEO, Steve Sandherr joined other transportation leaders in a panel discussion at the Association of American State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Washington Briefing to discuss the passage of the surface transportation reauthorization, the FAST Act.
During the discussion, Sandherr underscored the importance of the collective efforts of AASHTO and other transportation stakeholders in securing support for the FAST Act, which provides five-years of increased funding for federal-aid highway and transportation programs.
Sandherr went on to point out that the since the bill did not address the structural deficiencies plaguing the Highway Trust Fund that the focus is now on building support for a long-term, sustainable, user-pay revenue source for the trust fund that will end the reliance on general fund transfers. Since 2008, the Highway Trust Fund has required cash infusions of over $140 billion dollars to meet its obligations.
51·çÁ÷ continues to advocate for a federal gas tax increase to fix the trust fund but is also exploring other user fees and taxes to achieve long-term solvency of the Highway Trust Fund. One of those options includes a mileage-based user fee – also known as a vehicle miles travelled fee. Recently 51·çÁ÷ joined the , a national group that conducts education and outreach on the potential for mileage-based user fees as an additional way to provide for transportation funding. Currently 51·çÁ÷ is the only construction industry trade association serving as members of MBUFA. As such, 51·çÁ÷ staff participated in a panel discussion on transportation funding this week at the MBUFA national conference.
51·çÁ÷ will continue to focus on finding a long-term, sustainable, user-fee based revenue source for the Highway Trust Fund.
For more information, please contact Sean O’Neill at oneills@agc.org or (202) 547-8892.