Truckload Authority - Winter 2014/15

Winter Edition | TCA 2014-15
Legislative Look-In
By Lyndon Finney
Gather a group of politicians and consultants together, and if you
were outdoors outside the Capitol on a cold December day you’d
probably have trouble getting a consensus on the weather, even if everyone
was standing by a thermometer that read 32 degrees.
Those from the North would call it a heat wave.
Those from the South would call it bone-chilling cold.
(Those from the left coast would probably have to consult with the California
Air Resources Board before rendering an opinion).
But there’s no difference of opinion about the biggest — and most critical
— issue facing the trucking industry in the wake of the 2014 mid-term
elections, and the party affiliation of the new Senate and House members
has little bearing on the most-watched challenge the 114th Congress faces
when it convenes January 3, 2015.
“Legislation to reauthorize the federal surface transportation programs
and address the nation’s highways and bridges will be one of the House
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s top priorities,” Rep. Bill
Shuster, the committee chairman, told Truckload Authority. Shuster is probably
the most influential transportation voice on Capitol Hill. He has been
beating the bandwagon for a new transportation bill for months, but was
unsuccessful in getting a replacement for MAP-21, which expired earlier
this year, only to be extended by an embattled Congress.
He promises bipartisanship as the panel pushes ahead next year.
“Over the last two years, our committee has worked well with the
Senate committees to move transportation legislation forward, and that
includes both Republicans and Democrats in the Senate,” Shuster said.
“With Republicans gaining control of the Senate in this election, House and
Senate committee leaders’ philosophies may now be more in line with one
another, but in the House we will continue to work in a bipartisan fashion
as we move forward and work with anyone interested in improving our
infrastructure and keeping America competitive.”
Three transportation analysts agree with Shuster’s push, but caution financing
the Highway Trust Fund will be no easy trick, regardless of the political
make-up of Congress.
“We need a highway bill. The problem is everyone agrees we need a new
bill, but no one has figured out how to fund it,” said George Reagle, former
associate administrator of the Office of Motor Carriers at the Federal Highway
Administration (forerunner of today’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration)
and now a consultant in Washington noted for his broad knowledge of
trucking, particularly in areas of carrier safety technologies. “Except for this
last time (MAP-21), we’ve generally had six-year bills. I really worry whether
it’s Republicans or Democrats [in control], that we’ll ever see another six-year
highway bill. And that obviously affects the hell out of the trucking industry because
if we don’t have good highways, we’re in deep trouble. Unless they can
figure out how to fund it, my guess is we end up with a one- or two-year bill.”
And a short-term bill, Reagle said, puts states in a dilemma because they
can only do short-term planning.
“States really can’t lay out a five-year plan and no matter where you drive,
you see that our roads are in terrible shape,” he said, noting that the United
States transportation system, which used to be rated the best in the world,
now ranks only 21st. “We need a long-term funding program not only to maintain
what we have, but to make it better. We have to see the Republicans get
together and come up with a highway bill.”
Laura O’Neill is a Washington attorney and a former lobbyist for the Owner-Operator
Independent Drivers Association who is now a principal at Twenty
First Century Group.
“Traditionally, transportation has been an area where the two parties have
gotten along, although there have been recent hurdles,” she told Truckload
Authority. “I think you have a desire on both sides to work together and set
aside partisan differences. I don’t think there was [a past] reluctance from the
Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee under Democratic
leadership to work with the House T and I Committee under Republican leadership.
So I don’t think there will be changes for better or worse. I think the
desire to work together is genuine and remains.”
O’Neill believes that a highway bill can be moved through Shuster’s committee
with the help of new T and I ranking member Peter DeFazio of Oregon,
but wonders how it will fare with House GOP leadership. He is replacing Rep.
Nick Rahall, D-W. Va., who lost a re-election bid for a 20th term.
“I am optimistic that it can,” she said. “Finding consensus in the Senate in
order to avoid procedural opposition will also be a hurdle, but I believe surface
transportation is an issue where common ground can be achieved. One difficulty,
as with any new Congress, is that you have a large group of people
who are new to the process so there is a learning curve which will slow down
movement. It’s understandable and not insurmountable. You have two very
capable transportation veterans running the committee and I believe there is
a willingness for a new framework.”
Truckload Authority | www.Truckload.org TCA 2014-15