House T&I Committee's FY 2012 "Views and Estimates" Offers a First Glimpse Into the Committe's Thinking About the Future Transportation Program
Reproduced below are some key quotes from a recently released House T&I Committee document, Views and Estimates for Fiscal Year 2012. They offer a first indication of the Committee's position on the FY 2012 surface transportation budget and the reauthorization bill. The report confirms what congressional sources have been telling us informally for some time--- namely, that future federal outlays (spending) on surface transportation will need to be aligned with trust fund revenues from existing user fees. In the Committee's words, The Committe is committed to writing a long-term surface transportation authorization bill that keeps the HTF solvent without additional transfers from the General Fund. Consistent with this policy, the Committee has rejected the Administration's $556 billion reauthorization proposal and its $50 billion funding request for FY 2012. The administration's budget proposal, the report states, does not identify a way to pay for these increases without increasing the deficit.
The document speaks in broad policy terms and does not provide recommended funding levels. However, these can be deduced from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates. The latest CBO report (March 18, 2011) projects the Trust Fund revenues at $232 billion over the next six years, FY 2012-2017 ($201billion for the Highway Account and $31 billion for the Transit Account). Another $22 billion is estimated to remain unspent in both Trust Fund accounts at the end of Fiscal Year 2011. Thus, the total sum available to fund the next six-year authorization (FY 2012-2017) would amount to $254 billion or an average of $42 billion/year ---assuming, that is, that Congress would maintain its commitment to limit annual budget authority to revenues raised through the gas tax, and forswear any additional transfers from the General Fund. By comparison, the five-year SAFETEA-LU authorization was funded at $244.1 billion or an average of $49 billion/year.
The Views and Estimates report was approved by the full Committee (with dissenting opinions) and transmitted to the House Budget Committee on March 18. Under the Congressional Budget Act and House rules, each legislative committee is required to submit its views and estimates on the forthcoming budget to the Budget Committee to assist in the preparation of a budget resolution. The House Budget Resolution is expected to be made public by mid-April.