NACA Members | Past Issues | Key Contacts

.Volume 3, No.10

... March 2, 2007

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... INFRASTRUCTURE

Senate Introduces Dam Legislation

Rep. John Salazar (D-Colo.) introduced the Dam Rehabilitation and Repair Act of 2007 (H.R. 1098), which would provide $200 million over five years to repair state and locally owned dams.

The legislation is nearly identical to H.R. 1105, introduced but not passed in the 109th Congress.

Contact David Hubbard or John Sullivan.

... ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT

Earthquake Hazards Advisory Committee Members Named

The Hon. William Jeffrey, director of the Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), has named 15 distinguished academic, industry, and government experts to serve on the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) Advisory Committee on Earthquake Hazards Reduction.

PCA, working with the NEHRP coalition, secured the reauthorization of the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program. This legislation designated NIST as the lead federal agency and authorized the creation of the advisory committee.

Click here to view a news release and biographical sketch for each member.

Contact John Sullivan.

... TRANSPORTATION FUNDING

House Transportation Committee
Objects to President's Budget Proposal

Yesterday, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee objected to the administration's proposal to eliminate $631 million in revenue aligned budget authority (RABA), as well as other budget-related proposals, from the Department of Transportation's FY 2008 budget.

The committee, in its annual "views and estimates" letter to the House Budget Committee, said the administration's budget falls short of honoring the full funding of amounts guaranteed for highways under the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU). The budget request eliminates RABA funding, which was authorized at $842 million for FY 2007 and $631 million for FY 2008.

Highway funding levels are based on estimates that are adjusted annually. The annual calculation of this adjustment is designed to ensure that highway funding tracks closely with actual and anticipated revenue. The administration requested $842 million for RABA in FY 2007, and it is included in the yearlong continuing resolution. In addition, the committee's letter also criticized the administration's proposal to rescind $1.317 billion in unobligated contract authority that has been distributed to the states.

"This is highway program funding guaranteed in various surface transportation statutes," the letter said. "The rescission of unobligated contract authority will allow the administration to claim savings to offset other non-transportation spending elsewhere in the budget."

The committee further said the rescission "undermines the principles of the highway and public transportation budgetary firewalls."

Contact David Hubbard or John Sullivan.

... CONGRESSIONAL RECESS

House Transportation Committee
Passes Technical Corrections Bill

On Thursday, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved legislation designed to trim some transportation spending programs to pay for additional research.

The noncontroversial bill, H.R. 1195, approved by voice vote restored the 80/20 research funding match for the High-Performance Concrete Bridge Technology Research and Deployment program. It also restored the contract authority language for the Magnetic Levitation program.

At a briefing after the mark-up, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Jim Oberstar
(D-Minn.) told reporters that he expects the legislation to hit the House floor during the week of March 12.

Click here and then enter H.R. 1105 in the box marked "Search Bill Text" to review the bill.

Contact David Hubbard or John Sullivan.

... LABOR

House Approves Card-Check Bill

In a victory for labor unions, the House has passed a bill that would make it easier for them to organize non-union companies.

The bill, H.R. 800, the Employee Free Choice Act, was approved today by a 241-135 vote. The White House issued a statement yesterday saying that President Bush would veto the Employee Free Choice Act if it gets to his desk.

The statement said "workers would lose substantial control over their employment situation" if the bill becomes law. The White House said the bill would threaten secret-ballot requirements for unionization and cause workers to "lose control over whether they belong to a union in the first place."

The House vote split generally along party lines, with all but two Democrats voting for the bill and all but 13 Republicans voting against it. The House vote falls short of the two-thirds majority needed to override a presidential veto.

There has been no action yet in the Senate, but card-check opposition groups are confident they have the votes to prevent cloture of a filibuster.

Contact Robert Sullivan.

... ABOUT NACA

Washington Briefing is published weekly by the North American Concrete Alliance (NACA). The newsletter summarizes the government affairs activities of the cement and concrete industry partners of this industry alliance.

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