The first piece of legislation adopted by the House is House Joint Resolution 64, a continuing resolution to extend Defense Department appropriations, surface transportation authorization, and other matters from today until Dec. 23. This resolution was passed in case the Senate can't complete work on the Defense appropriations bill today. The Senate must pass the joint resolution, however, to avoid a midnight shutdown of all federal surface transportation programs and the revenue sources that support them.

HR 3326, the Defense appropriations bill, was also passed by the House on Wednesday. This measure contains an extension of surface transportation authorization until Feb. 28. This gives the Senate time to pass a job-creation bill early next year.

The jobs bill, HR 2847, contains numerous transportation provisions including $37.3 billion in extra funding for highways, bridges, mass transit, Amtrak, aviation, and shipyards. (see related story) Its authorization provisions include an extension of existing policies, programs, and contract authority through Sept. 30, the end of federal Fiscal Year 2010. This measure would restore the highway programs baseline funding level for FY 2010 from $30 billion to $41.546 billion, which would make up for the billion dollars per month lost thus far under the continuing resolutions.

According to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, the jobs bill provides $53.3 billion in SAFETEA-LU highway, safety, motor-carrier safety, and mass-transit programs for FY 2010. The specific funding amounts are $41.546 billion for highways, $10.508 billion for transit, $729 million for highway safety, and $550 million for motor carrier safety. That is all in addition to the extra job-creation money the bill would provide.

The bill does not continue highway and transit program earmarks contained in the 2005 transportation authorization law known as "SAFETEA-LU." Instead, the bill provides each state with an additional amount of formula funding for the core highway programs that is equivalent to the amount the state received in Fiscal Year 2009 to carry out the High Priority Projects Program, transportation improvements, magnetic-levitation trains, and Highway Bridge Program set-asides.

A key provision in the bill would waive state matching requirements for federal surface transportation grants for the remainder of this fiscal year.

"Given the difficult budget situation facing many states, this provision will speed the delivery of projects by allowing recipients of federal-aid highway, highway safety, and public transit funds to proceed with projects that have been, or may have been, delayed due to the inability to provide a nonfederal share," according to the bill summary provided by the House T&I Committee.

Rep. James Oberstar, D-MN and chairman of the committee, said that 30 states, representing 70 percent of the population, are unable or will soon be unable to pay for their share of project costs because of state budget woes.

The bill also would provide a $19.5 billion infusion to the Highway Trust Fund, with $14.7 billion going to the Highway Account and $4.8 billion to the Mass Transit Account. This transfer from the federal government's General Fund would essentially reimburse the trust fund for interest payments not received since 1998, when Congress disallowed the trust fund from earning interest. The Highway Trust Fund is the only U.S. government trust fund prohibited from collecting interest. The bill would change federal law to allow interest collection in the future, a stipulation the T&I Committee estimates would bring in $500 million to $1 billion in interest per year to the trust fund.

"Without this investment, the Highway Trust Fund will decline, states will not be able to provide their 20 percent match, and we'll have a regression," Oberstar said. "The House acting on this now assures that state programs will be fully funded. Highway Trust Fund revenues will be invested, the sustainability of job creation will go forward, and we will be gaining jobs rather than losing jobs."

Another provision would restructure how the government pays for fuel-tax exemptions. Presently state and local governments who request reimbursements for federal fuel taxes paid to operate their fleet vehicles are paid out of the Highway Trust Fund. In the future, the bill would would mandate the General Fund make those payments, saving the Highway Trust Fund an estimated $1.7 billion annually.

"This one-year extension will provide greater certainty for states in their transportation planning, and increases funding to nearly the FY 2009 authorized level," Oberstar said.

Oberstar has pushed hard this year for the House to enact a full six-year authorization of surface transportation programs to replace SAFETEA-LU. But those efforts have stalled over the lack of a way to pay for the extra investment called for in Oberstar's draft $500 billion measure. Authorization has been temporarily extended twice since Sept. 30 as the House, Senate, and administration have differed on the way forward.

Jim Berard, a spokesman for Oberstar, said the chairman agreed to support an extension of SAFETEA-LU through next September in exchange for the extra provisions included for the Highway Trust Fund, the waiver of state matching requirements, and extra jobs money for transportation.

"It wasn't his first choice," Berard said of the bill. "But in the bargain he got $39 billion of 100 percent federal funding in the Main Streets job program, an additional $10.9 billion under SAFETEA-LU, an option for states to receive 100 percent federal funding for SAFETEA-LU projects, $19 billion in back interest payments, and future interest accruals to the trust fund, and additional General Fund revenues to offset fuel-tax exemptions.

"It also gives him 9.5 months to convince the Senate and White House to move on a long-term surface transportation bill," Berard added.

Alliance Urges Congress to Raise Fuel Taxes

The trio of bills passed by the House this week do not include any adjustments to the federal gasoline and diesel taxes that provide the bulk of the Highway Trust Fund's revenue. An alliance of motorists, bus companies, truckers, RV enthusiasts, motorcyclists, and businesses called Monday for action on that front.

The American Highway Users Alliance wrote to House and Senate leaders as well as U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood urging them to increase the motor-fuels taxes. The taxes have not been raised since 1993.

"As the Highway Trust Fund teeters on the brink of collapse with little progress on a highway bill, your leadership is critically needed to break through the various roadblocks," states the letter. "Responsibly increase the excise taxes on fuels to account for inflation, engine efficiency, alternative fuels, and increased highway and bridge needs -- while reforming programs to restore public trust in the Highway Trust Fund."