Venable partner and former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Jim Burnley was interviewed in the March 18, 2014 issue of Fleet Owner on the challenges complicating current transportation policy. The article cited a July deadline for the highway trust fund to run out of money and a slow legislative process.
“I’ve never seen a scenario like this before,” said Burnley. “We’ve had [funding] extensions in the past but the signal from Speaker [John] Boehner [R-OH] is that such an extension won’t happen this time. I attach great significance to that because now it means the funding issues must be dealt with and finished now, in the next few months. On top of that, both parties are not in favor of fuel tax increases. So now we’re in a situation where they’ve all got to come together quickly to approve a different funding approach. In 30 years I’ve never seen a situation like this.”
Discussing the legislative process, Burnley said to get “funding certainty” established, it must past through various conduits in Congress. While funding solutions can be offered by the Obama Administration and the chairs of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Burnley added, any actual money must come from the House Ways and Means Committee.
“I’ve never seen a scenario like this before,” said Burnley. “We’ve had [funding] extensions in the past but the signal from Speaker [John] Boehner [R-OH] is that such an extension won’t happen this time. I attach great significance to that because now it means the funding issues must be dealt with and finished now, in the next few months. On top of that, both parties are not in favor of fuel tax increases. So now we’re in a situation where they’ve all got to come together quickly to approve a different funding approach. In 30 years I’ve never seen a situation like this.”
Discussing the legislative process, Burnley said to get “funding certainty” established, it must past through various conduits in Congress. While funding solutions can be offered by the Obama Administration and the chairs of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Burnley added, any actual money must come from the House Ways and Means Committee.