Vitter Announces New Bipartisan Highway Bill Coming Next Week

Press Release

U.S. Sen. David Vitter, the top ranking Republican on the Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW), today announced that his committee will be moving forward on the Highway Bill next week. The long-term bipartisan legislation will improve the nation's federal-aid highway programs for six years.

"Building and fixing our nation's roads and bridges will help provide traffic relief so Louisianians can carry out their daily routine," Vitter said. "As I move forward with our legislation I'll remain focused on a long-term reauthorization bill that invests in rural areas, expands flexibility for state and local governments, and improves safety. It's also incredibly important that we get projects streamlined and cut bureaucratic red-tape so we can update and expand our infrastructure and reduce the burden of traffic congestion."

The current surface transportation bill, MAP-21, expires on September 30th.

Vitter has been negotiating the legislation with Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), EPW Chairman, Senator Tom Carper (D-DE), Chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee, and Senator John Barrasso (R-WY), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee.

Here are some of the principals that the Vitter highway bill will include:

Increases Louisiana's yearly highway fund for more than 6 years and provides long term certainty in investment.
Louisiana currently ranks 10th in the nation in the most deficient bridges. The bill will give locals more flexibility to "bundle" projects together. This bundling will streamline approval process, consolidate unnecessary paper work, and maximize efficiency to complete projects ahead of time.
New Orleans and Baton Rouge both rank in the top 25 in the nation in traffic congestion. The Vitter bill includes a new freight program that will relieve congestion by targeting funds to build additional lanes and improve the flow of commerce along our nation's highways.
Prioritizes major projects like I-49 South and LA 1.
Builds on previous highway bills the Vitter bill reduces delay in the delivery process by eliminating bureaucratic red tape in the environmental review process.
Improves highway safety by preserving funding to put safety infrastructure like guard rails and road barricades that prevent accidents and saves lives.
Improves transparency on the use of federal funds to reinforce public trust and show taxpayers where their infrastructure dollars are being spent.
Continues innovative financing tools that allow State and local governments to leverage Federal funds for transportation projects.
Expands flexibility for State and local governments to better address local needs and reduce the federal burden.

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