Enactment of a federal infrastructure investment package, together with increased congressional appropriations for the US Department of Transportation’s Tiger/Build and the Maritime Administration’s Marine Highways and Strong Ports programs, port security and diesel emissions reductions grants, additional Customs inspectors at seaports, FAST Act investments, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s navigation program are among key federal priorities for America’s seaports.
While ports are pleased Congress continues strong funding for the Corps of Engineers navigation program, including making progress toward full use of annual Harbor Maintenance Tax (HMT) revenue, a top 2019 priority is Congress adopting the American Association of Port Authorities’ unified industry plan that devotes 100 percent of HMT funds to America’s ports, while placing no additional tax burden on the industry or taxpayers. This plan provides a fair, equitable and reliable way to ensure the health of this critical part of America’s transportation infrastructure.
On the landside, the AAPA strongly advocates for a bill, like the one introduced in October by Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., to lift the multimodal cap on FAST Act INFRA grants.
US seaports have identified $66 billion in necessary port-related infrastructure federal investments over 10 years to keep freight moving efficiently … $33.8 billion for waterside and $32.03 billion for landside investments. The waterside portion calls for spending $27.6 billion to maintain deep-draft channels and harbors, and $6.2 billion to modernize them. The landside portion calls for spending $28.9 billion to build vital road and rail connectors to ports, and $3.13 billion to improve port infrastructure, allowing more funding for multimodal freight projects.
America’s seaport activity accounts for over a quarter of the national economy and supports 23 million US jobs. Local ports and their private sector partners plan to invest an estimated $155 billion into infrastructure between 2016 and 2020. Leveraging federal investments in port-related programs will yield huge dividends in economic growth, maintaining and creating jobs, enhancing America’s international competitiveness and sustaining a healthy environment.