[il-talk] {Spam?} FW: ATFI Coalition Hill Meetings -- T&I and EPW Staff

Tue Mar 7 01:11:03 UTC 2017

For those of you who were at the Chicago Chapter meeting this past Saturday, you heard me talk about the propose Trump administration highway infrastructure project.

Below is an article that ran in the Post this past weekend which explains a lot of what I discussed. 

Passing along the below story that ran over the weekend in the Post....

Chao says U.S. drivers may face more tolls to raise infrastructure funds

By  <https://www.washingtonpost.com/people/ashley-halsey-iii/> Ashley Halsey III March 4 

Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao this past week raised the prospect that needed infrastructure improvements may be funded to some extent by imposing tolls on more of the nation’s roads and bridges.

It was unclear whether she intends to expand tolling on the U.S. interstate system.

The concept of granting massive tax credits to lure private infrastructure investment was the centerpiece of President Trump’s campaign promise to raise $1 trillion for roads and bridges.

“To launch our national rebuilding, I will be asking Congress to approve legislation that produces a $1 trillion investment in infrastructure of the United States,” Trump said in Tuesday’s address to a join session of Congress.

He said the money would be raised “through both public and private capital, creating millions of new jobs.”

Beyond repeated calls to draw private investment, however, the White House had not reiterated its campaign promise to raise at least of portion of the money through new tolls. Even if investors attracted by the 82 percent tax credit Trump said he hopes to offer, they would expect an additional return on their money, and when it comes to roads and bridges, that cash would come from imposing new tolls.

“The federal government cannot assume the cost for all of it,” Chao said Tuesday night in a Fox News interview after Trump’s address, reiterating a point she made during her Senate confirmation hearing. She told Fox host Sean Hannity that “new and innovative ways” were necessary to find funding.

She said the president had “exciting and novel ideas about how to finance” what independent authorities estimate is the need for $3.7 trillion to meet infrastructure needs by 2020.

“Public private partnerships are a very important part of a new way of financing our roads and bridges,” she said.

Asked whether that would require imposing new tolls, Chao responded “that is certainly one example of how that would work.”

“I have to say that there are some people who may not support toll roads,” Chao said, “but we have to take a look at all of these financing mechanisms, because once again, the needs of our infrastructure are so great that the federal government cannot and should not be the only source of funding to repair our bridges, our roads and our energy grids.”

The challenge in luring private investment to build roads and bridges is that vast portions of the country outside of high-traffic volume urban hubs would not produce the toll revenue desired by investors.

There has been strong bipartisan opposition in Congress to imposing tolls on the interstates, beyond those like the New Jersey and Pennsylvania turnpikes that were grandfathered in when they became part of the network. One senior Democratic senate aide said any plan that relies primarily on tolling is “dead on arrival.”

Chao has been largely unavailable to reporters since taking the Cabinet post, and she was whisked away after addressing a convention of transportation officials this past week. Her staff did not respond when asked repeatedly what percentage of U.S. roadway Chao thought might be tolled and whether more drivers who use interstates might face tolls in the future.

The Congressional Budget Office said in 2015 that just 26 private-investment projects were completed or underway nationwide.

Overreliance on private funding already has been called into question by one influential senator, John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), who chairs the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.

“Funding solutions that involve public-private partnerships, as have been discussed by administration officials, may be innovative solutions for crumbling inner cities, but do not work for rural areas,” Barrasso said at a committee hearing last month.

On Wed, Mar 1, 2017 at 5:58 PM, David Fialkov <dfialkov at natso.com> wrote:

Apologies for the multiple emails, but the below story just hit the wire in the last hour....

 <https://www.bgov.com/core/news_articles/OM5P1G6VDKHT?ni_source=AlertEmail&ni_name=NewsAlert> White House Said to Kick Off Infrastructure Planning Thursday

March 1, 2017 05:00PM ET | Bloomberg Government

(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump’s administration will convene a meeting of at least 15 federal agencies Thursday as a first government-wide step toward crafting the president’s $1 trillion infrastructure initiative, a senior White House official said.

Gary Cohn <http://www.bgov.com/company_people/4736079> , director of the National Economic Council, will lead the meeting, which will focus on identifying new projects that would boost the economy; finding existing projects, such as the Keystone XL pipeline, that could be expedited; targeting policies, outdated rules and laws that could delay projects; and developing funding and financing options, the official said.

The meeting follows Trump’s speech to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, when he said he wants to leverage public-private partnerships and public capital to upgrade crumbling roads, bridges, ports and other infrastructure. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that all funding options are currently on the table. Lawmakers and policy experts have floated ideas that include taxing corporate profits that are parked overseas and creating an infrastructure bank.

The official said that a proposal will be developed and presented to Trump, but the timing is uncertain.

Most U.S. infrastructure is owned and controlled by states and municipalities, so the federal government’s role is more regulatory. Trump has already issued an executive order to expedite environmental reviews and permitting for high-priority projects.

‘Percolate Up’

The National Governors Association provided to the White House a list of 428 priority projects from 49 states and territories on Feb. 8 that it had solicited from the states. How projects will be selected for funding has yet to be determined, the White House official said.

Governors from both political parties, interviewed at their annual winter meeting in Washington last weekend, said they expect to play a key role in those decisions.

“At the end of the day, I think it’s going to percolate up from the governors,’’ said Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe <http://www.bgov.com/us_governors/BB688131> , a Democrat and president of the National Governors Association. “They can’t get this done in Congress without us.’’

Republican Governor Mary Fallin of Oklahoma, a former member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, echoed McAuliffe’s concern. “It’s important to have that state input into what is a national priority,’’ she said.

Trump, meanwhile, has been building his team to work on the plan. The White House announced on Tuesday that DJ Gribbin will serve as a special assistant to the president for infrastructure policy, under Cohn. Gribbin, a former chief counsel for the Federal Highway Administration and general counsel for the U.S. Department of Transportation, has worked on public-private partnership deals for Macquarie Capital USA Inc.

‘Every State’

During his speech to Congress, Trump called for “a new program of national rebuilding,” likening the initiative to President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s construction of the interstate highway system across the U.S.

Lawmakers are anxious for details. Representative Peter DeFazio <http://www.bgov.com/us_legislators/BB464>  of Oregon, the top Democrat on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said it’s “time to put some flesh” on Trump’s proposal. “What’s missing is a real plan and the money,” DeFazio said after Trump’s speech on Tuesday.

Representative Bill Shuster <http://www.bgov.com/us_legislators/BB11055>  of Pennsylvania, the Republican chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said he’s met with Trump and his policy staff and told them there have to be projects in all states.

“We should look at every state and say what are the projects that are going to bring the states along,” Shuster said Wednesday at a meeting of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials in Washington.

Democrats including DeFazio and even some Republicans have argued that trying to rely on the private sector alone won’t generate $1 trillion of investment or allow projects in all parts of the U.S. Deals involving private investment require a revenue stream such as tolls, which aren’t popular or even practical in rural or thinly populated areas.

Spurring Investment

Democratic congressional leaders support more spending on infrastructure but say that the proposed mechanisms to spur private investment -- such as a tax credit -- would only benefit the wealthy. Republican congressional leaders have made it clear they won’t support a significant increase in spending that isn’t offset by cuts so that it doesn’t add to the debt or deficit.

The White House official said it’s premature to speculate what the mix of private and public funding and financing might be.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao <http://www.bgov.com/company_people/1402314>  said her office was exploring new ways to finance infrastructure, including through public-private partnerships, to attract private investment and remove barriers.

“Business as usual is just not an option anymore,” Chao said Wednesday at the transportation officials’ gathering in Washington. “Everyone can agree that our country can no longer take decades to build a new bridge or a new road, a new highway or airport.”

On Wed, Mar 1, 2017 at 5:04 PM, David Fialkov <dfialkov at natso.com> wrote:

Following up on yesterday's meeting schedule for next week (please let me know if you plan on attending any of the meetings noted in my prior email below), I wanted to flag for you a few news items over the last 24 hours:

1) Trump Speech to Congress

Last night Trump reiterated plans to introduce a $1 trillion investment plan, saying it would be funded with "both public and private dollars" and that it would be guided by two core principles: Buy American, and Hire American.  Beyond that it was light on details about what would be included in the package and how it would be funded.  It is becoming clear the more we speak w/ folks on the Hill that such a package would have to ultimately tied to tax reform. 

2) DOT secretary Elaine Chao Speech today to AASHTO

-Secretary Chao addressed the trade association for state DOT officials today, and called for the removal of barriers that hinder "public private partnerships" (or PPPs, a phrase that I view as a euphemism for tolling).  This is obviously a troubling sentiment for her to express, but I'd note a couple of things: First, she made this statement more in the context of streamlining permitting and environmental reviews and things of that nature -- which we would all likely support.  Second, the people in her audience today -- state DOT officials -- are going to be a driving force behind efforts to expand tolling and other revenue-raising mechanisms. So this could very well have been her simply making high-level remarks that she knew her audience would support.

3) Senate Commerce Committee Hearing

The Senate Commerce Committee held a hearing today examining improving access to infrastructure in rural communities.  At the hearing Chairman John Thune (R-SD) said that while public private partnerships may be useful in certain highly populated areas, they "are not a substitute for traditional infrastructure investment."  Ranking Member Bill Nelson (D-FL) was more direct, saying America cannot "toll our way out of infrastructure problems."  Speaking with reporters after the hearing, Thune reportedly said that focusing solely on PPPs "is clearly not an approach that is going to work very well, certainly where I'm from."

As I've said before, the fact that tolling doesn't help lesser traveled rural areas will help our efforts, especially in the Senate, where the EPW and Commerce committees are populated largely by senators representing such states.

Hope the above is helpful -- Hope to see some of you next week on the Hill.

-Dave

On Tue, Feb 28, 2017 at 3:26 PM, David Fialkov <dfialkov at natso.com> wrote:

Good afternoon,

We have meetings scheduled next week with the primary staffers on EPW and T&I covering surface transportation issues.  The purpose of the meetings is to (re-)introduce the coalition to them, and get their advice / intelligence on what the next few months look like, let them know that we'll be meeting with their committee members, etc.  

The meeting schedule is below.

Tuesday March 7 -- Murphie Barrett (T&I Majority) -- 2:00pm; 2253 Rayburn

Tuesday March 7 -- Helena Zyblikewycz / Kathy Dedrick (T&I Minority) -- 3:00PM; 2167A Rayburn

Thursday March 9 -- Rebecca Higgins (EPW Minority) -- 10:00am; Hart 508

Thursday March 9 -- Jan Brunner (EPW Majority) -- 10:45am; Hart 415

Please let me know if you'll be able to attend these meetings.

Also, you may have seen some news yesterday that President Trump told the National Governors Association that he will deliver a "big statement" on his infrastructure plans in his speech tonight before a Joint Session of Congress. We'll obviously keep an eye on this tonight and let you know what we learn. 

Also yesterday, VA Gov. Terry McAuliffe, Chairman of the National Governors Association, said that he and other governors back the concept of "public-private partnerships" (which I view as a euphemism for tolling) to fund infrastructure.  Clearly we have some educating to do.

Thanks, look forward to seeing some of you next week.

-Dave

-- 

David H. Fialkov

Vice President, Government Relations

Legislative and Regulatory Counsel

NATSO, Representing America's Travel Centers and Truckstops

dfialkov at natso.com

(703) 739 - 8501 <tel:(703)%20739-8501> 

-- 

David H. Fialkov

Vice President, Government Relations

Legislative and Regulatory Counsel

NATSO, Representing America's Travel Centers and Truckstops

dfialkov at natso.com

(703) 739 - 8501 <tel:(703)%20739-8501> 

-- 

David H. Fialkov

Vice President, Government Relations

Legislative and Regulatory Counsel

NATSO, Representing America's Travel Centers and Truckstops

dfialkov at natso.com

(703) 739 - 8501 <tel:(703)%20739-8501> 

-- 

David H. Fialkov

Vice President, Government Relations

Legislative and Regulatory Counsel

NATSO, Representing America's Travel Centers and Truckstops

dfialkov at natso.com

(703) 739 - 8501