House Republicans have proposed a radical change to U.S. transportation policy.
If they have their way, the nation's transportation network will take a giant step backward to a "roads only" policy for dedicated funding, meaning none of the revenue from federal gas taxes would go toward mass transit.
The full House had been scheduled to vote this week on the multi-year transportation bill (House Resolution 7), but there was enough opposition emerging that Speaker John Boehner postponed a vote until next week.
The United States needs a transportation system that gives people a variety of options -- roads, rail, bus, bicycle paths and walkways. It needs to find ways to reduce emissions and traffic congestion.
Currently, the federal gas tax we all pay when we fill up at the pump goes into the Highway Trust Fund. Since President Ronald Reagan signed the 1982 transportation bill, the money has been divided into an account for highways and an account for mass transit.
Today, of the 18.4 cent-per-gallon federal gas tax, 15.44 cents goes to highways and 2.86 cents goes to trains and buses and other public transportation systems. The rest goes to clean up leaking underground storage tanks.
HR 7 reverses that division, putting all gas tax money into highways. The Mass Transit Account goes away. The bill makes a show of putting one-time money toward "alternative transportation," but no source is identified. Public transportation would get the shaft.
And it isn't the only bad provision in the bill. One would prevent California from being eligible for high-speed rail funds. Others would open the North Slope of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas leasing, allow oil shale development on public lands and expand drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.
Local Republicans, including Rep. Jeff Denham, R-Turlock, know that air quality is a critical issue for our valley. He needs to reconsider his view on HR 7 when it comes to the House floor.
If the Republican majority in the House doesn't change course, the Senate will have to intervene. California Sen. Barbara Boxer and her committee colleagues passed a bipartisan transportation bill. In a joint House-Senate conference committee, Boxer will have to stand fast against the House roads-only bill.
We need a national transportation policy that gives us more transportation options, not fewer.
Editorials are the opinion of the Merced Sun-Star editorial board. Members of the editorial board include Publisher Eric Johnston, Executive Editor Mike Tharp, Online Editor Brandon Bowers and Guest Editor Jessica Boerner-Grissom.
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