Weekly Column

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There is no expiration date on a good idea.

As a state senator in the Nebraska Unicameral, I developed innovative approaches to solving funding challenges for our state’s surface transportation needs.

One of these proposals aimed to give local communities more control over the highway construction process. My legislation, which was later signed into law, tasked the Nebraska Department of Roads with developing the Federal Funds Purchase Program. In exchange for giving up a portion of federal transportation dollars, Nebraska counties and towns can now receive funds with more reasonable regulatory requirements.

Because of this program, transportation projects, like the longstanding bridge replacement in Buffalo County and a major arterial street in South Sioux City, are up and running.

Another initiative I championed at the state level was the Build Nebraska Act. It directed a fraction of each cent of sales tax revenue toward maintaining Nebraska’s roads and highways. Because of it, more than $1 billion will be available to meet Nebraska’s infrastructure needs over the next 17 years.

I am now bringing these ideas to the U.S. Senate. Called the Build USA Infrastructure Act, my legislation is modeled on Nebraska’s successful laws, and it offers real solutions to our national transportation challenges.

Those challenges are significant.

According to the March 2016 estimates by the Congressional Budget Office, by the year 2026, the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) will face a cumulative shortfall of approximately $107 billion. The HTF allocates federal transportation dollars on an annual basis to states to help pay for vital infrastructure projects.  States and communities across our country depend on certainty in this crucial funding for highway, road, and bridge infrastructure projects.

My Build USA Infrastructure Act would directly address the near-term solvency of the HTF.  Specifically, it would divert $21.4 billion annually in revenues collected by the Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) on freight and passengers into the HTF. The agency only uses a portion of this revenue for operations, so allocating it to transportation would not affect the CBP’s operating budget. These diversions would take place for five years following the expiration of the latest long-term highway bill. 

To help states get projects up and running at a faster pace, the act also establishes voluntary “state remittance agreements” with the Federal Highway Administration. As part of these agreements, states may choose to return some of their allocated federal highway dollars for greater control over certain design, permitting, and construction aspects of federal regulatory approval for highway projects.

Bottom line: the Build USA Infrastructure Act will address the near-term solvency of the Highway Trust Fund without raising taxes on Americans. It will also give states greater flexibility in meeting transportation needs.

In the Senate, I serve as the chairman of the Surface Transportation Subcommittee on the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee. I am also a member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee. At a recent EPW committee hearing, I highlighted the Build USA Infrastructure Act and invited feedback from state transportation leaders. Like its Nebraska namesake, this bill earned positive reviews for bringing certainty into questions about funding and offering greater flexibility to states in initiating critical transportation projects.

Few Americans understand the value of surface transportation better than Nebraskans. We rely on our roads and highways to connect families, bring goods and services to market, and feed a hungry world. We carry on this important work across more than 97,000 miles of public roads.

Nebraska acted prudentially to care for its roads and surface transportation infrastructure. I am excited to bring that same idea to Americans nationwide. I look forward to working with the White House and my colleagues in Congress to do just that.            

Thank you for participating in the democratic process. I look forward to visiting with you again next week.

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