Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR) has kicked off a House hearing on 21st transportation investments. Buttigieg will be testifying.
Watch live: c-span.org/video/?510156-
Conversation
Most everyone is appearing by Zoom. Some members didn’t mute their microphones and Rep. DeFazio gravelled them to shut off their mics or get the boot. 😳
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Rep. DeFazio says they’re gonna do it all in an infrastructure bill: wastewater/sewer systems, airports, roads, public transit, and anything else in his committee’s purview.
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That pretty much is authorization for Democrats to ignore the radicalized party in designing a bill.
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He points out how China is beating out America on transportation investments. He says the US needs to get serious.
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He highlights the many lives that have died on our dangerous roads, climate change concerns with our transportation system, and the inequity that the system has for families.
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He references the historic inequities of building highways in neighborhoods.
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The hearing has moved on from Secretary Buttigieg’s opening statement to Q&A.
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Rep. DeFazio is pleased about the 's change on TIFIA loans and qualification for grants. This is in reference to rescinding a "Dear Colleague Letter".
Rescission notice: transit.dot.gov/sites/fta.dot.
Old Dear Colleague Letter: transit.dot.gov/sites/fta.dot.
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Rep. Graves wants to work on keeping the Highway Trust Fun solvent (it's deeply insolvent). He wants a user fee that keeps it going.
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You can read Secretary Buttigieg's opening statement here:
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Safety / access: "Right now, nearly 40,000 Americans die on our roads annually, millions live in communities isolated or divided by missing or misplaced infrastructure, and millions of Americans don’t have access to affordable transportation options to get around."
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Equity / affordability / sprawl: "Before the pandemic, commuting times were getting longer for average Americans while their housing and transportation costs soared."
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Secretary Buttigieg namechecks Capitol Bikeshare and tells Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) he'd be happy to work with her on bikes.
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Safety: "Now is the time to redouble our commitment to transportation reliability and safety and ensure that families will no longer have to mourn tragic deaths that could have been prevented."
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Environmental justice: "Now is the time to finally address major inequities — including those caused by highways that were built through Black and Brown communities...and the disproportionate pollution burden from trucks, ports, and other facilities."
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Climate: "Now is the time to improve the air we breathe and tackle the climate crisis by moving the U.S. to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, building a national EV charging network, and investing in transit, transit-oriented development, sustainable aviation..."
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