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SEN.
SALAZAR FIGHTS FOR COLORADO’S
TRANSPORTATION NEEDS
WASHINGTON,
D.C. – United States Senator
Ken Salazar spoke on the Senate floor today and voted in favor of passing the
long overdue transportation reauthorization bill today. Congress has not passed a transportation
bill in over two years and the delays have caused Colorado’s and other state’s Departments
of Transportation to operate under short-term extensions. The Senate’s transportation
bill passed this afternoon with a bipartisan majority by a vote of 89 to 11
and will now head to a conference committee to resolve differences with the
House-passed legislation.
“Colorado’s
and the Nation’s highways, bridges, roads and workforce need this funding,”
said Salazar. “The delay in the
passage of this transportation bill has cost the country about 100,000 jobs
and created real uncertainty for states that are trying to make construction
decisions. For the good of Colorado’s
transportation infrastructure I hope the conferees on the conference
committee can keep the funding levels where they are now.”
The transportation bill as passed by the Senate increases funding
nationally to $295 billion without adding to the already exploding
deficit. It increases Colorado’s funding
share by about $156 million more
than it receives currently. It will allow the Colorado Department of
Transportation to invest in important projects across our state such as our new
transit initiative – TREX, as well as investments in US 160, I-70 and I-25.
In Colorado,
30 percent of our major roads are
congested, 43 percent of our roads
are in poor or mediocre condition and almost 20 percent of our bridges are structurally deficient. And, for every dollar that a Coloradan
puts into the Highway Trust Fund our state receives about 90 cents back. Under the Senate proposal, in 2009 Colorado will receive 92 cents back – and this is still
much less than what is equitable for Colorado
and other donor states alike.
Senator Salazar’s
full Senate floor speech is available below.
Senator Ken Salazar
May 17, 2005
2005 Transportation Equity Act
Regarding Unfair Dispersal of Tax Receipts
Mr. President, I am very pleased to be on the floor today
to talk about this long overdue transportation reauthorization bill. We need to pass this bill. We have not had a transportation bill in
more than two years. This delay has
caused the state Departments of Transportation in Colorado and across the country to operate
under a series of short-term extensions.
The delay in the passage of a new transportation bill has
cost the country about 100,000 jobs and created real uncertainty for states
that are trying to make construction decisions at a time when they are also
trying to recover from a devastating fiscal crises.
The passage of a new transportation bill is
essential. In fact, there is nothing
like the passage of a new transportation bill, which will create those jobs
and provide the much-needed funding, to jumpstart the economic picture in Colorado and across
the country.
In fact, this is exactly the kind of business the American
people expect us to be conducting.
This important legislation will create thousands of jobs in Colorado as well as
support important transportation infrastructure needs on roads in our cities
and rural areas, on our transit systems and our bridges.
This legislation will also lay the groundwork to provide
for important high priority projects across Colorado. And, these are all essential projects that
will simply not get completed without the passage of this legislation, which
will reinvigorate our economy and make our country strong.
The first step towards this goal was with our vote to
increase the funding level of this bill to $295 billion. I commend my colleagues Senators Grassley
and Baucus to working to increase this funding without adding to the
deficit. This additional funding will
give a 46% increase to my state of Colorado
– about $156 million more than we receive under current law and about $26
million more than the House-passed transportation bill.
Here’s what this additional $26 million could do for my
state of Colorado. It will allow the Colorado Department of
Transportation to invest in important projects across our state such as our
new transit initiative – TREX, as well as investments in US 160, I-70 and
I-25.
Here’s what the $26 million increase doesn’t do. It doesn’t add to our nation’s
deficit. This additional funding is
completely paid for. These are the
types of choices that I am proud to make for Colorado,
and these are the choices we should be making for America.
In Colorado,
30 percent of our major roads are congested, 43 percent of our roads are in
poor or mediocre condition and almost 20 percent of our bridges are
structurally deficient. We need this
increase in transportation dollars and I will continue to work with my
colleagues to ensure that the highest level of funding for our transportation
infrastructure is maintained.
Nonetheless, Colorado
is a donor state – that’s Washington-speak describing those states that put
more money into the Highway Trust Fund than we get back.
There is a real issue of fairness that I would like my
colleagues to take a hard look at. Fairness for the people of Colorado, and
all of the other states, who pay the same gas tax as the rest of the country
every they fill up at the gas pump, but just don’t get the same return on
what they invest in that tax.
Currently, for every dollar that a Coloradan puts into the
Highway Trust Fund our state receives about 90 cents back. Under the Senate proposal, in 2009 Colorado will receive 92 cents back – and this is still
much less than what is equitable for Colorado
and other donor states alike.
We need to pass a bill, and while the proposal being
considered in the Senate certainly is a step in the right direction, it does
not provide the level of investment that would address Colorado’s growing transportation needs as
well as the needs of donor states.
To correct this unfairness we need to take three
steps.
First, I am proud to support an increase in the overall
funding of the bill without adding to the deficit. As I have said, this is the first step
toward fixing this unfairness.
Secondly, we have to make sure that we protect that
increase in Conference with the House.
The President has indicated that he will veto this larger investment,
leaving Colorado
with a level of funding that will not support the needs of our state. Keep in mind that the rising costs of steel
and oil have also driven up the costs of construction, and the President’s
own Department of Transportation said the country needs a level of funding
more than $100 billion than what the President said he supports.
The next step we need to take is to correct the unfair
formula that disadvantages states like ours.
I hope my colleagues will help us continue to look for ways to provide
adequate investment, that will give donor states, like Colorado, the rate-of-return that we need
and deserve.
Having a first class transportation system is critical to Colorado. I look forward to the passage of this very
important bill, and I will continue to work to see that this most basic level
of infrastructure funding is not only maintained – but improved – so that we
can have safe roadways and robust economic development throughout the state.
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