Congressman Don Young Releases Statement Following Passage of Partisan House Democrat Transportation Bill

Statement

Today, following his "no" vote on H.R. 2, Alaska Congressman Don Young released the following statement:

"Alaskans know how critical reliable infrastructure and safe transportation are to our state's vast and unique geography. Roads, bridges, and railways are essential for connecting Alaska's cities, rural communities, and Native villages to hospitals, grocery stores, schools, and other basic necessities. I have been a consistent and vocal supporter of responsible federal infrastructure investment so that we can strengthen roads, airports, and other infrastructure in Alaska and across our nation. Unfortunately, the bill brought to the House Floor today not only falls shamefully short, but it actively broadens the disparity in investment between urban and rural America for the sake of implementing the multi-trillion-dollar boondoggle known as the "Green New Deal.'

At this extraordinary time in our nation's history, for us to undertake a partisan highway bill that seeks to advance one party's political agenda over another, represents the unfortunate continuation of "winner takes all' thinking in Congress. Now is not the time to measure building bridges and roads against greenhouse gas emission reductions. It is a time to make sound investments and responsible choices on how to finance our nation's transportation system, not pass the buck. Instead, Democrats are using the COVID-19 crisis to push their policy preferences. If this bill were to seriously address the near-term economic impacts of the pandemic, it would focus on backfilling state revenue shortfalls to provide stability and certainty so they can continue to invest and employ workers.

There is a very good reason that we call this the "My Way or the Highway Bill': House Democrat Leadership wrote it without any input from Republicans. As former Chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, I proudly presided over the successful passage of a bipartisan transportation bill. I took special care to keep the process open and permit my friends on the other side of the aisle to offer proposals and amendments so that we could produce a bipartisan bill that could be signed into law. That is what this moment demands of Congress. Regrettably, Democrats have focused their efforts on checking every box on their partisan wish list resulting in a $1.5 trillion bill that is largely unpaid for, spends 62% more than the previous authorization, and will add to our country's already staggering debt. Instead, the bill should provide certainty for state DOTs and consider a long-term solution for the Highway Trust Fund.

Today's bill also misses the mark on a provision found in the bipartisan proposal currently in the Senate. Reforming and streamlining our federal permitting process will help ensure that the National Environmental Policy Act is not used to derail or unnecessarily delay politically unpopular projects. This is especially critical for Alaska, where some project development timelines and permitting reviews have stretched on for decades.

For every $5 spent in this bill, $2 is used to meet the "Green New Deal's' unrealistic goals. Worse yet, this bill is a disaster for our states; it reduces flexibility for governments to meet their own state's unique needs, all while issuing top-down federal mandates without offering any means of paying for them. The bill's "Fix It First' policy supersedes states' ability to prioritize projects and could require states to fund maintenance over new construction when they need the opposite. Finally, this sham bill makes clear that the majority on the Transportation Committee comes from large coastal cities that are out of touch with Alaska and the rest of the nation. 71% of public roads are in rural America. Yet, this legislation builds far more electric vehicle charging stations than it does roads to connect rural areas.

Whether it is by land, sea, or air, transportation is critical to our state's economy and the well-being of our communities; I very much want to see a bipartisan bill that can become law and meet our infrastructure needs. In fact, last week, I was proud to co-sponsor H.R. 7248, the STARTER ACT, which outlines a set of commonsense principles to restart a viable surface transportation reauthorization process. Today's vote was an election year stunt and, very frankly, a waste of time during an already short legislative calendar. It dangles the promise of $1.5 trillion in taxpayer dollars under the guise of "infrastructure' when it is really about federal overreach and the enactment of deeply partisan policy. I will continue fighting for Alaskans and standing up for our infrastructure priorities.

I love this institution. It is difficult to fathom how we as a Congress have found a way to sidestep collaboration on the federal facilitation of commerce, one of our core responsibilities. In my career as a Member of Congress and as a Chairman of this committee, this is the first time I will be unable to support a surface reauthorization bill. I call on my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to come back to the drawing board to draft legislation that puts Americans and their needs over the demands of a small but vocal group of liberal extremists."

Source