Safe, Accountable, Flexible, and Efficient Transportation Equity of 2003

SAFE, ACCOUNTABLE, FLEXIBLE, AND EFFICIENT TRANSPORTATION EQUITY ACT OF 2003

Mr. SPECTER. I commend my colleague from Pennsylvania, Senator Santorum, for his very cogent remarks about the highway bill and its effects on Pennsylvania. I associate myself with what my colleague from Pennsylvania has said.

I think it is unfortunate we have a bill which appears to be heading for a Presidential veto. We have a bill which quite a number of States find unsatisfactory.

I compliment the Senator from Oklahoma, Senator Inhofe, the chairman of the committee, and Senator Jeffords, the ranking member of the committee, as a whole, for their very strenuous efforts. But I do believe Pennsylvania is not being treated fairly. Senator Santorum has gone over the specifics about our State, which has very heavy traffic going through the State, the third heaviest truck traffic State in the Nation. Almost half of the trucks which go into Pennsylvania do not stop in Pennsylvania. There are very difficult problems of weather, potholes, and highway deterioration that require Pennsylvania be granted more of the funding.

Pennsylvania has traditionally been a donee State, which means Pennsylvania receives more than the funds which Pennsylvania contributes to the trust fund. Now Pennsylvania, for the first time, was turned into a donor State, so Pennsylvania is contributing more to the trust fund than Pennsylvania is receiving. I think that just is not appropriate.

I have also expressed my concern earlier in voting against cloture, on the first cloture vote earlier in the week, about the concerns I have for the size of the budget. There has been a clear-cut statement from the White House that the President is not going to agree with the figure present in the Senate bill. That is why I voted against cutting off debate, because I think to be fruitful in what we are doing here we are going to have to work with the President's figure.

We all know about the ballooning deficit, in the range of $500 billion. We all know about the national debt. We have very heavy expenditures in many areas. We have a budget that has been submitted which grants a very small allocation for discretionary spending. In the context of where we are with the deficit, it seems to me the President is correct, that this bill ought to be pared, at least to some extent.

The bill is ultimately going to have to be signed by the President, although it is a matter of speculation as to whether there are enough votes to override a Presidential veto. But I am not prepared to override a Presidential veto and I am not prepared to support a bill with this funding flow, where there has not been some accommodation with the White House, some accommodation with the President.

There are many steps before the matter comes to a final determination. There will be final action taken by the Senate, which appears to be passage. We will have to see whether there are more than 67 votes in favor of the bill. There will be a conference. Senator Santorum and I are continuing to talk with the chairman of the committee and the ranking member and others on the committee to try to get a more equitable share for Pennsylvania. But on this state of the record, I cannot support this bill.

I yield the floor.