The House Appropriations Committee cleared its FY 2019 Transportation, Housing & Urban Development funding bill. Below are some highlights of the legislation:
The bill includes appropriates $542 million above the fiscal year 2018 enacted level and $11.7 billion above the President’s request. In total budgetary resources, including offsetting collections, the bill provides $87.8 billion to improve and maintain our nation’s transportation infrastructure.
- TIGER/BUILD (National Infrastructure Investments) – The BUILD program (formerly known as TIGER) is funded at $750 million. This program will fund states’ and local communities’ most critical transportation projects. Language is included to ensure a balanced allocation of funding among rural, suburban, and urban areas, and $250 million is set aside for port projects.
- Highways – The legislation honors MAP-21 authorized levels and adds an extra $4.25 billion in discretionary highway funding – a small portion of that funding will be directed to local governments and a vast majority of the funds will only be able to be spent on highway and bridge construction.
- Transit – The legislation includes $2.6 billion for Capital Investment Grants (commonly called New Starts) of which $1 billion is included for current Full Funding Grant Agreements (FFGAs) and $1 billion is dedicated to new projects. Language in the legislation limits federal match to 50% rather than 80%. The bill also authorizes $800 million for transit grants including $350 million for bus/bus facility grants, $250 million in additional formula funds, and $200 million for state of good repair grants.
- Positive Train Control – $150 million for PTC grants in included in the legislation.
CoaST Position – CoaST is supportive of the increased investment made by this legislation, however, we are deeply concerned by the limitations placed on the additional $4.25 billion. This legislation forces local governments to build their way out of their transportation problems. This legislation should not only allow, but should encourage State and municipal governments to look to innovation, transit, and TDM to help address infrastructure needs. We look forward to working with Congress as this legislation moves forward this summer.
For more information go to: http://www.smartertransportation.org/federal-policies/federal-legislation/
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