Congress Extends Highway Program Again

Congress on Thursday agreed to a seventh extension of the federal highway program that expired nearly two years ago. Transportation groups cited deteriorating road conditions in urging lawmakers to quickly enact a better-funded plan.

The Senate by voice vote approved a one-month extension, until June 30, of the 1998-2003 law that provided $218 billion for highway, public transit and safety programs. The House on Wednesday passed the extension, which allows federal funding for highway projects to continue at the level of the law that expired on Sept. 30, 2003.

Congress has tried unsuccessfully to pass new legislation that increases infrastructure spending while adjusting the formula to assure that federal grants to the states are nearly equal to the amount states pay into the highway trust fund through federal gas taxes.

Last year the White House threatened a presidential veto, saying the proposals would add to the federal deficit, and another veto threat was issued against the six-year, $295 billion bill the Senate passed last week.

The House in March passed a $284 billion bill, the spending level that the White House said was the maximum it would accept.

With the summer construction season beginning, state transportation offices and industry groups have pressed Congress to move quickly on a compromise.


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