Dive brief:
- Transportation and Infrastructure Committee leaders on Sunday agreed to a five-year, $580 billion surface transportation bill that allocates $65 billion to rail programs and $41 billion to discretionary grant programs.
- The bill authorizes a total of $87.6 billion from the Highway Trust Fund’s mass transit account for fiscal years 2027 through 2031, an increase from the $69.8 billion allocated in the Jobs and Infrastructure Investment Act.
- Amtrak would receive $10.4 billion in subsidies over five years for operations on the Northeast Corridor and $20.7 billion for its national network. The legislation bars any federal grants, awards or financial assistance to the California High-Speed Rail project for two years while a task force determines whether the project can meet the requirements outlined in the 2008 voter-approved bond measure allocating funds for the California High-Speed Rail Authority.
Diving knowledge:
The proposed legislation, drafted in the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, continues a series of multi-year surface transportation programs dating back to 1978.
Committee Chairman Sam Graves, R-Mo., and the committee’s ranking member, Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Wash., said in a joint statement Sunday that they plan to formally introduce the legislation soon. Their goal is for Congress to send a final bill to the president before the current surface transportation authorization expires on September 30, 2026.
“This bill is not simply about honoring our past, but about moving forward and building on our nation’s infrastructure legacy,” Graves said in a statement. “The bill also makes smart, targeted reforms to our surface transportation programs, focuses on strengthening our core infrastructure system, drives innovation, strengthens safety, ensures states have the flexibility they need, and cuts red tape to build projects faster.”
To strengthen the highway trust fund, the bill imposes an annual registration fee of $35 for hybrid vehicles and $130 for electric vehicles. Fees would increase by $5 each year starting in 2029, to $50 for hybrids and $150 for electric vehicles.
“While this bill does not include all priorities, I am committed to building on the latest bipartisan infrastructure law by creating good-paying transportation jobs, growing the economy, and moving people and goods safely across the country by road and rail,” Larsen said in a statement.
Committee leaders said they plan to set an upcoming date for the bill’s markup, which will allow members to suggest changes or amendments.
