Ranking Members Larsen, Norton Statements from Hearing on Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Implementation

Floor Speech

"I would like to thank Subcommittee Chair Rick Crawford for holding this hearing on the implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was one of the most important bills enacted last Congress. Within our Subcommittee’s jurisdiction, it provided $365 billion for highways, $108 billion for transit, $43 billion for multi-modal grants and $13 billion for highway and motor carrier safety.

The work of our Subcommittee helped set the bar high. Many of the funding levels in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act are similar to what we proposed in the INVEST Act.

Two years in, we are seeing the success of the law across the country. This past summer, the national capital region’s transit agency, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, received a $104 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration to purchase zero-emission buses, convert an existing maintenance facility to serve electric buses and train its workforce to operate and maintain electric buses.

I thank Administrator Fernandez and the Biden Administration for this investment in good jobs and cleaner air for our region. Success stories like this are playing out across the nation. Every Member in this room today—whether they voted for the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act or not—has at least one project funded in their congressional district.

As implementation continues, our country will see safer transportation, improved mobility, a cleaner environment and better access for all communities.

Much work remains to be done. America is experiencing an epidemic of traffic fatalities, which is falling disproportionately on pedestrians, cyclists and communities of color. I look forward to hearing from each of our witnesses about their work to prevent these fatalities.

We also must reckon with the rise of new technology, such as autonomous vehicles, and what it means for our workforce. Our workers are the backbone of our transportation network. As new technologies become more prevalent, we must ensure that we protect jobs and give workers a seat at the table.

We also must work to mitigate the impact of our transportation system on the environment. Transportation is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, and our transportation policies and programs must be reformed accordingly. Expanding access to transit, walking and biking infrastructure is a key part of the solution.

I also support the Federal Highway Administration’s new requirement that states and Metropolitan Planning Organizations track their highway emissions and make plans to reduce them. This requirement is derived from authority provided by Congress in 2012 and is a critical step in the right direction.

I also appreciate Department of Transportation-wide efforts to improve equity and redress the decades of harm caused by our transportation system to low-income communities and communities of color. I urge the department to ensure the Neighborhood Access and Equity funding, approved by this committee as part of the Inflation Reduction Act, is quickly put to use.

Thank you to our witnesses today. I appreciate your diligent work to implement the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and the diverse and thoughtful perspectives you bring to the challenges ahead. I look forward to today’s discussion."

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