Summary of 2016 Transportation and Housing and Urban Development Approriations bill

The Republican bill to fund transportation and housing priorities drastically short-changes job-creating investments critical to hardworking American families, like roads, bridges, and rail systems and access to safe and affordable housing.  At the same time, it includes special interest giveaways for the trucking industry and other policy riders that make our roads less safe and our rail system less competitive and meddles foolishly in foreign policy. 

2016 mark:                  $55.3 billion

2016 budget request:  $65.0 billion

2015 enacted level:    $53.8 billion

*The President’s 2016 budget request proposes to fund some transportation accounts via mandatory – rather than discretionary – funding.

Transportation

• Capital Investment Grants, used to build or expand subway, light rail, and commuter rail transit systems, are cut to $1.92 billion, which is $198.6 million less than the 2015 enacted level and $1.33 billion less than the President’s budget request.
• Amtrak is cut to $1.14 billion, which is $251 million below the 2015 enacted level and $1.3 billion below the President’s budget request, causing Amtrak to defer critical maintenance and capital investments.
• National Infrastructure Investments (TIGER), which funds critical highway, transit, passenger rail, and port investments, is cut to $100 million, which is $400 million less than the 2015 enacted level and $1.15 billion less than the President’s budget request.
• Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is funded adequately at $15.88 billion, which is $159 million more than the 2015 enacted level and $40.5 million more than the budget request. However, within this amount, FAA’s capital program is cut $100 million below the 2015 enacted level and $355 million below the President’s budget request, hampering FAA’s ability to maintain and improve aging facilities and slowing NextGen development.
• Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) is cut to $100 million, which is $50 million below both the 2015 enacted level and the request.

Housing and Urban Development

• Public Housing Capital Fund is cut to $1.68 billion, $194 million below the 2015 enacted level and the approximate funding level in 1989.  This amount would cover less than half of annual maintenance needs while doing nothing to address the $25 billion backlog of deferred maintenance.
• Choice Neighborhoods is cut to $20 million, $60 million below the 2015 enacted level and $230 million below the President’s budget request.
• Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes is cut to $75 million, $35 million below the 2015 enacted level and $45 million below the President’s budget request.
• HOME Investment Partnerships receive $767 million, which is a $133 million cut from the 2015 enacted level.  The bill claims an additional $133 million by repurposing funds intended for the Housing Trust Fund.
• Housing for the Elderly is cut to $414 million, which is $6 million below the 2015 enacted level and $41 million less than the President’s budget request.
• Section 8 Rental Assistance is funded adequately to renew existing vouchers and contracts, but does not fund the President’s request for new vouchers.
• Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) are funded at $3 billion, equal to the 2015 enacted level.
• Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS (HOPWA) is funded at $332 million, which is $2 million more than the 2015 enacted level.

Policy Riders

The T-HUD bill includes priorities sought by the trucking industry, which will make our roads and interstate highways much less safe and reduce accountability for wrongdoing, including:

• Allowing twin 33-foot tractor-trailers on the interstate highway system, increasing total truck length by 10 feet;
• Suspending a key portion of a federal rule requiring a minimum period of rest for truckers working long hours;
• Prohibiting the Department of Transportation from increasing minimum insurance requirements for heavy trucks and motor coaches; and
• Increasing truck weight limits on federal highways in Idaho by nearly 24,000 pounds.

The T-HUD bill would make our rail system less competitive by prohibiting licenses or permits for high speed rail projects in California.

The T-HUD bill meddles foolishly in foreign policy, inserting an unnecessary, unrelated, and divisive issue into what should be bipartisan legislation.  The bill would prohibit commercial air travel or cruise ships from going to Cuba, a provision that would surely spur a veto by President Obama.