The three-week extension will hopefully lead to a long-term bill.
Congress is expected to pass the 35th extension for the Highway Trust Fund this week. But this time, it looks like things will be different.
The House should pass a three-week extension of current funding to avoid a highway shutdown. The short extension (22 days!) allows more time for the House and Senate to finish work on a six-year, partially funded $325 billion bill.
“Congress has not passed a transportation funding bill that lasted longer than two years since 2005, much to the chagrin of infrastructure advocates in Washington,” reports The Hill.
Remember: A six-year transportation bill of at least $100 billion annually would support upwards of 2.18 million American jobs and rebuild our underperforming infrastructure, according to Duke University CGGC.
Both chambers must work to quickly complete the long-term bill. During the 22-day extension, the House is only scheduled to be in session for eight days and the Senate is in session only 14 days.
“We look forward to voting on that bill in the House soon and then going to conference with the Senate on their highway bill,” said Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA). “I am confident that we can resolve the differences between the House and Senate measures and produce a final product that’s good for our Nation’s infrastructure.”
Here’s hoping we finally get a long-term, fully funded bill in November!