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This week, the House Energy and Commerce Committee voted 31-16 to approve H.R. 2218, the “Coal Residuals Reuse and Management Act of 2013,” which was sponsored by Rep. David McKinley (R-W.Va.) and a bipartisan group of representatives. The legislation would prevent the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from regulating coal ash (including fly-ash) as a “hazardous” substance. The legislation would give states broad powers to regulate the disposal of waste from coal combustion as long as they follow minimum federal standards. Earlier this week, �������ϲʿ���Ԥ�� sent a letter to the committee urging that the legislation be adopted.

Earlier this week, nearly 400 contractors, suppliers and other construction industry partners participated in the 2013 Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) Fly-In to deliver the message to Congress that MAP-21 needs to be reauthorized on time and the Highway Trust Fund needs to be fixed. TCC members were armed with charts and issue papers which illustrated how – without new revenue on or before Sept. 30, 2014 – highway and transit funding for new projects would plummet in FY 2015 by 92 percent and, in subsequent years, would be significantly reduced. Fly-in participants thanked Congress for passing MAP-21 and including significant reforms in program administration but also pointed out that the job is not done until the Highway Trust Fund solvency is resolved.

You are urged to join your industry allies in Washington, D.C., on June 4-5, 2013, at the Hyatt Regency Washington for the Transportation Construction Coalition’s 2013 Legislative Fly-In and deliver the message to Congress that timely reauthorization of MAP-21 must be a priority.  Remember that lack of action by Congress to address Highway Trust Fund solvency before September 30, 2014 could lead to significantly reduced highway and transit funding in future fiscal years. Many members of the House and Senate are not convinced that this is a problem. They seem to think that states will make up whatever decline there is in Federal funding. They need to be educated and this is the perfect opportunity.

A task force of �������ϲʿ���Ԥ��’s Highway and Transportation Division met this week with U.S. DOT Under Secretary Polly Trottenberg, FHWA Administrator Victor Mendez, FHWA Associate Administrator for Civil Rights Warren Whitlock and other DOT officials to discuss the DBE program and steps that could be taken to improve it.  Some of the issues addressed included certification and prequalification of DBEs, assistance from primes to DBEs, mentor-protégé relationships, clarification of good faith efforts and training programs. Several of the issues pointed out in the Inspector General’s report were also discussed. DOT has expressed an interest in improving the program and asked �������ϲʿ���Ԥ�� for recommendations.

This week, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a report highly critical of DOT’s administration of its Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program. OIG found that the department does not provide effective program management for the DBE program. Specifically, DOT has not issued comprehensive, standardized DBE guidance; provided sufficient training to the recipients responsible for implementing the program; or have a single line of accountability for the program.

The chief executive officer of the Associated General Contractors of America, Stephen E. Sandherr, issued the following statement in response to the nomination of Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx to Serve as U.S. Secretary of Transportation: "It is encouraging that President Obama has decided to nominate someone who has first-hand experience with the significant challenges posed by our chronic under-investment in infrastructure and years-long and broken regulatory review process. Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx has a unique opportunity to promote new sources of revenue to address chronic shortfalls in federal funding for our aging network of highways, bridges, airports and transit systems. In addition, he will be well suited to ensure that the Department of Transportation takes the steps required in the most recent surface transportation legislation to significantly reduce the time it takes for federal officials to approve new transportation projects. We will never be able to compete globally if it takes over a decade to approve new ways of moving goods and services from one point to another in this country."

Thirty-eight percent of highway contractors had motor vehicles crash into their construction work zones during the past year, according to the results of a new highway work zone study conducted by the Associated General Contractors of America.  Association officials added that the study found work zone crashes are more likely to kill vehicle operators and passengers than construction workers. 

President Obama’s budget proposal for transportation includes many of the same ideas that the administration has proposed over the past several years, but none of which have been met with much support in Congress. Included in the transportation request for FY 2014 are more details on the $50 billion “Fix It First” initiative most recently proposed by the president in his State of the Union address. 

June 4-5 | Washington, DC �������ϲʿ���Ԥ�� and the Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) scored a major victory last year when the “Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act” (MAP- 21) became law. The legislation provided a two-year authorization through the end of FY 2014 and sufficient revenue to support current funding levels. With this major victory behind us, now is the time to address the long term viability of the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) by providing the revenue necessary to fix the nation’s current and growing transportation investment deficit. As Congress continues to debate the budget, deficit spending and revenue, it is important that transportation investment be central to the discussions.

�������ϲʿ���Ԥ�� has learned that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has determined that the September 6, 2012 proposed changes to its Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program regulations are “significant” and therefore will be given closer scrutiny.