With the current TEA-21 extension bill expiring on February 29, the Senate must pass a second extension bill by week’s end to keep highway money flowing to the states. On February 11, the House passed a second TEA-21 extension that would lapse at the end of June. However, Senate leaders favor a two-month extension bill, which would place more pressure on House leaders to pass a long-term reauthorization bill before the Easter-Passover recess in April.

On February 12, the Senate passed a long-term reauthorization bill (S.1072), which would fund highway and transit programs at $318 billion over the next six years. With the House unable to even pass a long-term reauthorization bill out of committee, the Senate for the time being, will have to follow the lead of the House and pass another short-term extension bill.

Senator James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma), Chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, feels that a longer extension bill would impose a greater burden on state DOTs trying to plan for future highway construction projects. Inhofe desires a two-month extension, which would force the House to pass a long-term reauthorization bill by the middle of April. Senator Inhofe recently met with House leaders and feels that both Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Illinois) and House Majority Leader Tom Delay (R-Texas) are more interested in passing a long-term bill rather than a long-term extension.

Members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, such as ranking member, Rep. James Oberstar (R-Minnesota) and Highways, Transit and Pipelines Subcommittee Chairman, Rep. Tom Petri (R-Wisconsin), want the Senate to pass a three or four month extension bill. Both Oberstar and Petri feel the House will need more than two months to consider a long-term reauthorization bill. Members of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee led by Chairman Don Young (R-Alaska), continue to brandish the committee’s $375 billion reauthorization bill. However, such a bill would require an increase in the gas tax and is opposed by House GOP leaders and the President. Chairman Young has indicated that he might drop the price tag of the committee’s bill, but has not yet indicated whether the committee will match the Senate bill’s cost of $318 billion. Chairman Young will have to rely on the Ways and Means Committee to pass a revenue title that will support funding increases in highway and transit programs.

Initially the House T&I Committee was supposed to markup their reauthorization bill on February 25, but the hearing was delayed until either March 1 or 3. Chairman Young is still negotiating provisions of the bill with House GOP leaders and Rep. Bill Thomas (R-California), Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee.