November 2023 Legislative News

Transportation Legislative News

Last week, a House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee subcommittee examined how to ensure the sustainability of the Highway Trust Fund (HTF), which is used for road and bridge construction on the interstate highway system. As EVs, hybrids, and more fuel-efficient vehicles become the norm, gas tax revenues have dipped, and the HTF has followed, resulting in the fund currently spending more money than it’s bringing in. 

Members heard testimony from the Oregon Department of Transportation, the Washington State Transportation Commission, the Eno Center for Transportation, and the Congressional Budget Office.  At the hearing, Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA), a sponsor of the Modern, Clean, and Safe Trucks Act, argued that passage of his bill–which would repeal the 12% federal excise tax (FET) on heavy-duty trucks, which currently adds approximately $22,000 to the cost of a new tractor-trailer – would help ensure that any move to bolster the HTF would not be borne disproportionately by commercial motor vehicles. An equivalent of the FET does not burden other road users. 

Rather than pursue an increase in the gas tax, Republicans on the subcommittee advocated for policies that would ensure that EVs contribute to the HTF. 

A bipartisan Senate coalition introduced the CARS Act – the Choice in Automobile Retail Sales Act. The bill is a reaction against the Biden administration’s emissions reduction policies and state-level efforts like those in California that would place unrealistic and expensive mandates on the trucking sector. The legislation is sponsored by Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-NE) and Mike Crapo (R-ID) and co-sponsored by Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and more than two dozen Republicans. 

The legislation would prevent the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from finalizing an emissions rule and would stop any authority under the Clean Air Act for the federal government to mandate that vehicle buyers be limited only to certain types of engines. The bill also calls on EPA to update new rules limiting the availability of certain engine types for light and medium-duty vehicles. 

Trucking Bills Await Action 

The interruptions in the House due to the chamber’s inability to elect a speaker prevented the House Veterans Affairs Committee from hearing the Veteran Improvement Commercial Drivers License (CDL) Act last week. The bill, which has bipartisan support, makes it easier for veterans to use their GI bill benefits for CDL training. 

Also in the House is the Moving Americans Privacy Protection Act, which awaits a hearing in the Ways & Means Committee. The bill requires U.S. Customs and Border Protection to remove all personally identifiable information from international household goods manifests before releasing that information to the public. The bill was supposed to have been heard in committee three weeks ago. A Senate version has already passed that chamber by unanimous consent. 

In the Senate, the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee has yet to hear bills on workforce development, using Pell Grants for professional training, apprenticeship programs, and credentialing. All are important to the trucking industry, but the committee hasn’t acted on the bills since their consideration was postponed over the summer. 

Committee Updates 

• Senate Commerce Committee: Sent the nomination of Michael Whitaker to serve as the next FAA administrator to the full Senate. Also approved nominees to serve on the FTC, the Amtrak board of directors, and the Consumer Product Safety Commission. U.S. Coast Guard promotions were also approved.
• House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee: Held a subcommittee meeting to assess federal economic development programs.
• House Education & Workforce Committee: Scheduled a subcommittee hearing for this week on opposition arguments to a proposed Department of Labor overtime rule.
• Senate Appropriations Committee: Will hold a hearing next week to review a White House supplemental appropriations request for $106 billion for aid to Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan, and the U.S.-Mexico border.
• House Ways & Means Committee: Will hold subcommittee hearings on rural America and federal poverty programs and the disability adjudication process. The full committee will discuss educational freedom and opportunity.
• Senate Environment & Public Works Committee: Examined recent Clean Water Act wetlands protection legal cases.
• Senate Finance Committee: This week will hold a hearing on “Exploring Paid Leave: Policy, Practice, and Impact on the Workforce.” 

Compiled by: Britton Mullen, Principal of BC Consulting, a full-service government affairs strategist. Britton has successfully provided strategic policy guidance to some of the country’s top elected officials, corporations, and trade associations.