On Tuesday, the House Republican Conference met to consider a rules package that will govern how issues can be addressed in the 112th Congress (2011-2012). Among the proposed rules is a repeal of the guaranteed funding requirement for annual federal highway investment and the House point of order that enforces the guarantee. These guaranteed investment levels are established by the multi-year authorization.
An amendment offered by Rep. Steve LaTourette (R-Ohio) would have retained some of the guarantees of the program while giving the GOP a chance to cut funding if they can muster a majority of votes to do it on the House Floor. Unfortunately, that industry-supported amendment failed.
The new rules package does not determine the outcome of subsequent legislation nor does it require investment cuts. We must remain committed to working with the full Congress (and the Michigan delegation) on enacting a multi-year highway bill. The current extension of the program expires on March 4. As that date approaches, MITA will again ask for grassroots industry support for extending the program at increased investment levels.
Thank you for taking the time to help MITA’s advocacy efforts.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Mike Nystrom at mikenystrom@mi-ita.com, or Keith Ledbetter at keithledbetter@mi-ita.com or call the MITA office at (517)347-8336.
