Congress is sending the president its 32nd short term patch to keep the federal Highway Trust Fund funded this summer, but Virginia officials say that’s no way to fund the state’s transportation projects.
Conservatives and liberals don’t agree on much, but when it comes to highways and bridges they say the federal government maintains a vital role in keeping goods and services rolling from state to state.
Still, lawmakers can’t agree on a way to patch up the nation’s beleaguered funding mechanism for roads and bridges. That leaves lawmakers constantly scrambling to pass short term fixes, which in turn leaves local officials in a bind. Northern Virginia Democrat Gerry Connolly knows it's a headache from his time in local office.
“When you have short term patches you can’t do long term planning. Big transportation projects - even little transportation projects - have long timelines, in terms of engineering, in terms of funding it, in terms of feasibility, in terms of environmental impacts, in terms of public buy-in.”
The nation's aging infrastructure continually gets a D from officials, which Virginia Republican Scott Rigell says is unacceptable.
“These things are critical to just keeping the American people safe; so much of our infrastructure is old.”
Rigell says the state's poor infrastructure is also holding back the economy.
“I know in the Hampton Roads region we have significant needs that aren’t being met and I know that’s also true in Northern Virginia and to a degree in Richmond as well, so it’s definitely affecting the Commonwealth of Virginia.”
Rigell is putting his neck out with his conservative base by embracing a bill that would increase the nation's gas tax. It would index the tax to inflation, which hasn't been done in more than two decades. It also sets up a commission to explore new options for financing the nation's roads and bridges. Rigell says it puts pressure on Congress to implement the commission’s proposal because it threatens a further gas tax hike if they don't act.
“It will get the job done one way or the other. Ideally through what the commission advances and then is made into law, but if not then this mechanism triggers itself and it goes into effect. And it would provide the funding that’s needed for this.”
The Highway Trust Fund is currently filled through an 18.4 cent per gallon gas tax. Congressman Connolly says he's also willing to raise the gas tax, even if it's not politically popular.
“I’m open to any funding mechanism that makes sense and is fair. Indexing makes a lot of sense: it’s a user fee, which even conservatives can support, or should. And tying it to inflation just means we can maintain a level of service that has deteriorated considerably since the last time the gas tax was addressed.”
Virginia Republican Morgan Griffith says there’s a glaring problem with the existing funding mechanism.
“So that if you’re driving an electric car you don’t pay for the highways, and if you’re driving some other type of alternative vehicle - like hydrogen cell whenever they become available on the mass market - you’re not paying.”
While Congress has dithered for years on long term highway funding, some lawmakers are optimistic this Congress can do what others have failed to do. After a series of bipartisan compromises on everything from combating sex trafficking to cyber security, Virginia Democrat Don Beyer says he thinks lawmakers can tackle this problem later this summer.
“My fear was that I'm going to come here and be a part of "do-nothing Congress;” I actually think that we're going to get some things done. And I very much hope that a transportation bill can be a part of it.”
