[Senate Hearing 117-]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
TRANSPORTATION, HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES
APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2022
----------
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 16, 2021
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations,
Washington, DC.
The committee met at 2:32 p.m., in room SD-192, Dirksen
Senate Office Building, Hon. Brian Schatz (chairman) presiding.
Present: Senators Schatz, Reed, Murray, Coons, Van Hollen,
Collins, Boozman, Hoeven, Kennedy, and Braun.
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
STATEMENT OF HON. PETE BUTTIGIEG, SECRETARY
opening statement of senator brian schatz
Senator Schatz. This hearing will come to order.
Good afternoon and welcome. Secretary Buttigieg, I'm really
pleased and honored to have you before this subcommittee to
testify on the President's Budget Request for the Department of
Transportation for fiscal year 2022.
I look forward to discussing the President's vision and how
this budget request, along with the American Jobs Plan, will
help to improve the safety and efficiency of our transportation
networks.
It is a challenging time to plan ahead for DOT with a
reauthorization bill on deck, an overall budget agreement
outstanding, an American Jobs Plan under negotiations, the
impact of COVID still wreaking havoc on transportation
revenues, and Highway Trust Fund issues.
Now that we have the President's budget proposal, it's time
to get to work. It's not like the condition of our
transportation infrastructure is a secret. We all know that the
state of good repair needs in every single mode are in the
billions of dollars.
Highways and bridges have a $786 billion backlog, transit a
$105 billion in deferred maintenance, and Amtrak needs $42
billion for the Northeast Corridor alone, and that's just the
cost to address our current infrastructure deficit. That does
not protect our roads, rail, and airports from rising sea
levels and increasing flood risks. We must admit that
resilience is not a luxury. We cannot adapt to the effects of
climate change by nickeling and diming it.
I agree with the Secretary that it is time for bold action.
While it may be hard to come up with the revenues, it is
nowhere near the hardship that we will face if we don't invest
now.
I look forward to working with Ranking Member Collins to
pull together a bipartisan bill this year. We share the same
commitment to improving safety, rebuilding our transportation
infrastructure, and providing opportunities for the
transportation workforce.
The President's $88 billion budget request for the
Department of Transportation builds on many of these same
objectives and themes. The budget prioritizes safety by
increasing funding for FAA Safety Office and NHTSA's Vehicle
Safety Programs, both important to address weaknesses in our
certifications systems and the alarming rise in traffic
fatalities.
I'm glad to see that climate change initiatives are a focus
across the department because resiliency needs to be a key part
of any infrastructure program.
I'm also glad to see that the budget continues to invest in
our transportation workforce. It funds the Aviation Workforce
Development Program. It provides resources to help transit
systems adapt to electric vehicle fleets. It fully funds the
Fifth Maritime Training Vessel to educate our maritime
workforce.
The focus on these priorities demonstrates the commitment
to addressing the workforce challenges across the
transportation industry that I fully support.
I see a lot of good things in this budget request, but I'm
concerned about the lack of funding for Amtrak and the
potential impact to the workforce. The budget request will not
have enough to prevent furloughs and sustain services if we
don't have additional resources through a surface
reauthorization or the American Jobs Plan.
The same can be said with the elimination of popular
programs for airports and bridges. The Jobs Plan and surface
reauthorization have the potential to deliver historic
investments in infrastructure in every state.
It's important to know where things stand as we start to
mark up the THUD appropriations bill. If these negotiations
drag on, it will be incumbent on Congress to extend the FAST
Act as it expires on September 30th, as well as to make sure
the Highway Trust Fund remains solvent.
Secretary Buttigieg, I look forward to hearing your
testimony on the budget request. Your leadership at the
department is just what we need to focus on the future and the
challenges ahead.
Most people take transportation for granted until something
goes wrong. We saw this with the Colonial Pipeline incident.
We've seen it when roads get flooded or a bridge has to be shut
down and people don't have a way to get home. I really think
the way that you're speaking and leading on these issues is a
refreshing change.
With that, I'd like to turn it over to Vice Chair Collins
for her opening statement.
statement of hon. susan m. collins
Senator Collins. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
Secretary Buttigieg, I'm delighted to join the Chairman in
welcoming you to your first hearing before our subcommittee.
As part of the fiscal year 2021 Omnibus, we provided $87
billion for the Department of Transportation, excluding
emergency funding. This funding supports our nation's
infrastructure through important programs, including highway
funding, BUILD grants, now called RAISE grants, the Airport
Improvement Program, Port Infrastructure Development Grants,
and much more.
As we begin our work on fiscal year 2022, it is important
to note that unlike previous years, there is not yet a budget
agreement in place. Top line funding levels remain to be
determined.
The Administration's fiscal year 2022 request for DOT is 88
billion. Of this amount, the request includes 25.7 billion in
discretionary resources, an increase of 411 million above
current levels.
The Administration's budget request is in addition to its
infrastructure plan. As described in the budget, the American
Jobs Plan proposes nearly 2.3 trillion in new investment,
including 621 billion for transportation and resiliency
programs.
Under the plan, the department would oversee 540 billion in
transportation-related investments and 7.5 billion for
resiliency.
This proposal, as well as the Administration's fiscal year
2022 budget request, would be on top of the supplemental
funding provided by the CARES Act, the December COVID bill, and
the American Rescue Plan.
I have long supported a robust infrastructure investment in
this country and I worked hard with our former Ranking Member,
Senator Jack Reed, to increase funding for many programs.
The Administration's Infrastructure Plan, however,
represents trillions in new spending and seems to be a vehicle
for major unrelated policy changes rather than an effort to
modernize and rebuild our physical and digital infrastructure.
That's why I've been working hard with the bipartisan group
of Senators to develop a proposal that does focus on the
critical physical and digital infrastructure investments that
our nation needs.
Although I'm concerned about the overall level of spending
being proposed by this Administration, I want to take a moment
to discuss the areas of shared interest.
I'm pleased to see the inclusion of the popular RAISE Grant
Program, formerly called BUILD, before that was called TIGER,
in the Administration's request. I've championed this program
since 2009 as well as the INFRA Grants, which are focused on
freight corridors.
Our state departments of transportation rely on these two
programs to fund much-needed improvements. These programs have
been particularly helpful for Maine's rural communities,
including in Litchfield, West Gardner, Stonington, Greenbush,
Southport, Milo, and Bridgewater, where a BUILD grant is
funding the replacement of five at-risk bridges in poor
condition and the rehabilitation of a compromised bridge.
Additionally, I'm pleased that through another BUILD grant,
the communities of Waterville and Winslow will benefit from the
replacement of a 111-year-old bridge with a modern bridge with
wider lanes, shoulder, sidewalks, and bike lanes. It also will
eliminate the possibility of an eight-mile detour and related
congestion should the current bridge fail.
Rural communities face unique challenges in funding
transportation infrastructure and often rely on programs, like
RAISE, for necessary projects and improvements. According to
the department's own statistics, 68 percent of our nation's
total lane miles are in rural areas, two-thirds of rail freight
originates in rural areas, and nearly half of all truck vehicle
miles travel occur on rural roads.
It is therefore imperative that our rural communities
remain competitive in DOT's discretionary grant programs.
In addition, like the Chairman, I want to note the funding
that was included for the National Security Multi-mission
Vessel Program to replace California's Golden Bear Training
Vessel. This investment delivers the fifth and final Maritime
Academy Ship Replacement and fully funds the program that was
initiated in 2018.
These vessels are critical for training cadets at the Maine
Maritime Academy and at the other Maritime Academies. I am
concerned about the lag in getting them constructed and out to
the academies.
Finally, I'm pleased to see that the Administration
includes funding for the Essential Air Service and investments
to improve the safety and efficiency of our nation's air space.
The Fiscal 2022 requests 3.4 billion for facilities and
equipment, an increase of 395 million.
Again, Mr. Secretary, I welcome you to today's hearing and
I look forward to hearing your testimony.
Senator Schatz. Thank you very much, Senator Collins.
For the information of members, we have a three-vote series
at 3:15. We will roll right through and Vice Chair Collins will
take the gavel when I go down to vote.
Mr. Secretary, please proceed with your testimony.
summary statement of hon. pete buttigieg
Secretary Buttigieg. Thank you very much.
Good afternoon. Thank you, Chairman Schatz. Thank you,
Ranking Member Collins or Vice Chair, forgive me, and thank you
to all of the members of the committee for the opportunity to
join you and discuss the President's fiscal year 2022 Budget
Request for the Department of Transportation.
I also want to thank the members of this committee for your
strong support for the Department and its programs which help
to keep the American people safe and moving every day.
The Department of Transportation plays a crucial role in
maintaining and upgrading the infrastructure that powers our
economy and keeps us moving. Yet as we've seen in recent
months, such as with the I-40 bridge shut-down, much of our
infrastructure in a state of disrepair.
In some cases, we are relying on roads, bridges, railroads,
ports, and waterway infrastructure built a century ago.
In addition, our transportation infrastructure and systems
are not sufficiently designed to mitigate or be resilient to
the impacts of climate change.
If we are to grow our economy, remain competitive, and
address the climate crisis, we need to take swift and bold
action. At this moment of challenge and opportunity, President
Biden's first fiscal year 2022 Budget Request to Congress
reflects that urgent need as well as our values and priorities.
The request includes $88 billion to support transportation
priorities throughout the nation. These resources will enable
the Department to continue funding its current portfolio of
programs while also revitalizing transit and rail and making
necessary improvements to our aviation infrastructure.
The President's proposal also includes a funding request
for the American Jobs Plan, a once-in-a-generation investment
in repairing and transforming our infrastructure, which will
create millions of good-paying jobs and keep our economy moving
forward for decades to come.
It contains an additional $621 billion for long overdue
repairs and improvements for our highways, transit systems,
rail, ports, aviation, and more.
The details of the President's budget request advance the
vision of the American Jobs Plan and underscore our commitment
to key priorities: improving safety, building economic
strength, addressing the climate crisis, advancing equity, and
supporting innovation.
Let me share some of the highlights of this budget request
when it comes to transportation.
As always, promoting safety for the hundreds of millions of
Americans who rely on our transportation systems is this
Department's North Star and safety is embedded throughout the
budget request.
The President is requesting $18.5 billion for the Federal
Aviation Administration, including $17.4 million to strengthen
aviation safety oversight and begin addressing the requirements
of the Aviation Certification Safety and Accountability Act.
FAA will also receive a billion dollars to improve the
facilities that house the workforce and technology at the heart
of our air traffic control system. Many of these facilities
were built in the 1960s and are in dire need of replacement or
repair.
This funding will reduce the current backlog and help
ensure our air traffic controllers have an efficient, modern
workplace to carry out their mission of keeping the skies safe.
The budget also includes $246 million, over a $50 million
increase, for the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration's Vehicle Safety Programs. These programs help
advance safety innovations to keep pace with the rapid
development of vehicle electronics and automated driving
systems.
This funding will also help to mitigate carbon pollution by
enforcing the highest achievable fuel economy standards and
ensuring that alternative fuel vehicles are safe.
With respect to transit, the President's request includes
$2.5 billion for Capital Investment Grants, a $459 billion
increase, to accelerate existing transit projects and support
new ones. These increases will help us advance cleaner vehicles
while creating jobs to benefit our economy.
The President's budget includes $2.7 billion for Amtrak, a
35 percent increase, to accelerate track renewal, renovate
aging stations, refresh the existing capital fleet, and help
address maintenance backlogs throughout the system.
Along with a $625 million for a new competitive Passenger
Rail Improvement Modernization and Expansion Program (or PRIME)
Grants, these investments will be modernizing passenger rail
service and growing existing rail corridors throughout the
country.
To encourage innovative transportation projects that are
tailored to fit local needs, the President's request continues
$1 billion in funding for the flexible and over-subscribed
RAISE Grants. This popular competitive grant program provides
much-needed Federal funding to help localities that are working
on innovative modern infrastructure projects.
Lastly, I want to mention the $110 million requested for a
new Thriving Communities Program that will establish a new
office to help communities eliminate transportation barriers
and improve access to jobs, schools, and businesses to ensure
all Americans have access to fair, equitable, affordable
transportation options.
These are just a few of the items in the budget request,
which, together with the Jobs Plan, will help keep Americans
safe and moving, make the necessary investments to tackle the
climate crisis, and provide the foundation for economic
prosperity.
I thank you again for the opportunity to appear before you
today and I look forward to responding to your questions.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Peter Buttigieg
Chairman Schatz, Ranking Member Collins, and members of the
Subcommittee: thank you for the opportunity to discuss the President's
fiscal year 2022 Budget request for the Department of Transportation. I
also want to thank the members of this subcommittee for your strong
support of our Department and its programs, which help keep the
American people safe every day.
The Department of Transportation plays a crucial role in
maintaining and upgrading the infrastructure that powers our economy
and keeps us moving. Yet, as we've seen in recent months, such as with
the I-40 bridge shutdown, much of our infrastructure is in a state of
disrepair. In some cases, we are relying on roads, bridges, railroads,
ports, and waterway infrastructure built a century ago. In addition,
our transportation infrastructure and systems are not sufficiently
designed to mitigate or be resilient to the impacts of climate change.
If we want to grow our economy, remain competitive, and address the
climate crisis, we need to take swift and bold action.
At this moment of challenge and opportunity, President Biden's
first fiscal year 2022 budget request to Congress reflects that urgent
need, as well as our values and priorities. The request includes $88
billion to support transportation priorities throughout the nation.
These resources will enable the Department to continue funding its
current portfolio of programs, while also revitalizing transit and
rail, and making necessary improvements to our aviation infrastructure.
The President's proposal also includes a funding request for the
American Jobs Plan: a once-in-a-generation investment in repairing and
transforming our infrastructure, which will create millions of good-
paying jobs and keep our economy moving forward for decades to come.
It contains an additional $621 billion for long-overdue repairs and
improvements for our highways, transit systems, rail, ports, aviation,
and more.
The details of the President's budget request advance the vision of
the American Jobs Plan, and underscore our commitment to key
priorities: improving safety, building economic strength, addressing
the climate crisis, advancing equity, and supporting innovation.
Let me share some of the highlights of this budget request when it
comes to transportation.
As always, promoting safety for the hundreds of millions of
Americans who rely on our transportation system is this Department's
``North Star.'' And safety is embedded throughout this budget request.
The President is requesting $18.5 billion for the Federal Aviation
Administration, including $17.4 million to strengthen Aviation Safety
Oversight and begin addressing the requirements of the Aircraft
Certification Safety and Accountability Act.
FAA will also receive $1 billion to improve the facilities that
house the workforce and technology at the heart of our air traffic
control system. Many of these facilities were built in the 1960s and
are in dire need of replacement or repair. This funding will reduce the
current backlog and help ensure our air traffic controllers have an
efficient, modern workplace to carry out their mission of keeping the
skies safe.
The budget also includes $246 million--over a $50 million
increase--for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's
Vehicle Safety Programs. These programs help advance safety innovations
to keep pace with the rapid development of vehicle electronics and
automated driving systems. This funding will also help to mitigate
carbon pollution, by enforcing the highest achievable fuel-economy
standards and ensuring that alternative fuel vehicles are safe.
With respect to transit, the President's request includes $2.5
billion for Capital Investment Grants--a $459 million increase--to
accelerate existing transit projects and support new ones. These
increases will help us advance cleaner vehicles, while creating jobs
that benefit our economy.
The President's budget includes $2.7 billion for Amtrak,
representing a 35 percent increase. This support will accelerate track
renewal, renovate aging stations, refresh the existing capital fleet,
and help address maintenance backlogs throughout the system. Along with
$625 million for a competitive new Passenger Rail Improvement,
Modernization, and Expansion program--known as PRIME Grants--these
investments will modernize passenger rail service and grow existing
rail corridors throughout the country.
To encourage innovative transportation projects that are tailored
to fit local needs, the President's request continues $1 billion in
funding for the flexible and oversubscribed RAISE grants. This popular,
competitive grant program provides much-needed Federal funding to help
localities that are working on innovative, modern infrastructure
projects.
Finally, I want to mention the $110 million requested for a new
``Thriving Communities'' program that will establish a new office to
help communities eliminate transportation barriers and improve access
to jobs, schools, and businesses. This program aims to ensure that all
Americans have access to fair, equitable, affordable transportation
options.
These are just a few of the items in the President's 2022 budget
request, which, together with the American Jobs Plan, will help keep
Americans safe and moving, make the necessary investments to tackle the
climate crisis, and provide the foundation for economic prosperity.
Thank you again for the opportunity to appear before you today. I
look forward to answering your questions.
Senator Schatz. Thank you, Mr. Secretary.
Transportation is the largest contributor to greenhouse gas
emissions, but we do not currently measure the impact of new
transportation projects on emissions.
Are you going to engage in a rulemaking to require DOTs and
MPOs to set greenhouse gas emission performance measures?
Secretary Buttigieg. Yes, you can't manage what you don't
measure and, as you noted, we lack some of the measures that
are needed for performance with regard to tailpipe emissions,
and with transportation being the sector contributing the most
to greenhouse gases, we need to act.
The Federal Highway Administration plans to propose a rule
establishing a method for states and metropolitan planning
organizations (MPOs) to measure and report on tailpipe
emissions. We are hopeful of publishing the proposed rule for
comment in September 2021.
Senator Schatz. Thank you. We had this extraordinary
hearing a couple of weeks ago on resiliency, especially in the
context of climate change, and there was a researcher from the
University of Maine who had this extraordinary technology, some
of it funded by your UTC Program.
What we are starting to understand, though, is that UTC
funds these innovative new ways to do things and that doesn't
necessarily get deployed because, although there's a small
grant program to kind of do the technology transfer to the
various state departments of transportation, it's not enough of
a financial incentive, and so I'm wondering, you know, there's
a technocratic way to ask this question, which is how do we
make sure that the sort of workflow goes all the way from UTC
to innovation to deployment at the DOT level.
But it occurs to me that this is about building back better
but the execution is no small thing because it is entirely
possible that what Professor Doger has developed will take 20
or 30 years to be deployed if you don't fix our system in
partnership with us.
So what do we do about the problem of finding all this
technology and then it lays on the shelf and our state DOTs
either aren't aware of it or aren't incentivized to deploy it?
Secretary Buttigieg. Well, I want to thank you for lifting
up federally-funded research in Maine and so many other places
where this extraordinary work happens, and I view our
Department's role as not only directly supporting such research
but cross-pollinating, making sure that when a good idea is
being implemented, even if it's in a pilot phase or in a
nascent form, that we can help that get carried over to other
places.
Sometimes that can be directly encoded in what we support,
other times I think it's an informal role that the Department
plays, helping to share knowledge and expertise, but it's a
role that we look forward to embracing.
Senator Schatz. Thank you. Let me talk to you about net
zero emissions in aviation.
Does the FAA have a realistic plan to work with the
airlines to achieve their goal of zero carbon emissions by
2050, and how much of hitting 2050 depends on sort of hopeful
thinking as it relates to technological break-throughs or
massive subsidies?
Secretary Buttigieg. There is a lot of potential,
especially around sustainable aviation fuels, but I think any
of us intuitively can recognize the difference between, for
example, the progress made in zero emission cars and what's
going on with aircraft. A lot of the opportunity is less about
having a form of propulsion that doesn't burn any fuel and more
about making sure the life cycle emissions of the fuels are
reduced or even net zero.
That's a topic not only in the U.S. but in the global
aviation community as we head next year towards the
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)--convening.
It's something where I think we can come together around some
demanding standards and support airlines in seeking to meet
them.
Senator Schatz. Yeah. I just think there's a balance to
strike here between sort of magical thinking, imagining that
some technology will emerge in 2035 and solve all of our
problems and it's sufficiently far into the future that we can
just refer to it hopefully, and also declaring that this is not
doable and then not even trying.
So I'm hoping that you can strike the right balance, but
also be clear-eyed about where we are, and if the airlines are
essentially saying if you over-subsidize us, we'll do whatever
you want. Well, that's not quite the solution set that I think
we're going to want to land on.
Final question. You have a $110 million for Thriving
Communities. Everybody likes thriving communities, but what do
you mean by that?
Secretary Buttigieg. Thanks for the opportunity to spell
this out a little further.
The idea of Thriving Communities is that Federal dollars
can either help or hurt from the perspective of a community
being connected and the community sometimes being divided by
the very same pieces of infrastructure we're building.
Thriving Communities recognizes that there are places
around the country from south to north and east to west,
examples from St. Paul, Minnesota, to Pittsburgh to New
Orleans, where we've seen a piece of federally-funded highway
infrastructure, for example, literally cut a community in half.
We've got a chance to do something about that. Sometimes
that means capping a highway and reclaiming the land that was
torn up in order to produce it. Other times it means
introducing bridges over or tunnels under or transit routes
around these divisions, but the most important thing is to make
sure that transportation really does connect. That's something
that we're really eager to lean into as an important moral and
economic responsibility of the Department.
Senator Schatz. Thank you.
Senator Collins.
Senator Collins. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Secretary, in December Congress passed the Coronavirus
Economic Relief for Transportation Services Act, known as the
CERTS Act. It was part of a COVID relief package to provide $2
billion to support our nation's bus, motor coach, and passenger
vehicle industries, a sector that had really been overlooked in
previous COVID packages.
Senator Jack Reed and I authored this legislation and we
were successful in getting it included in the December package.
Virtually every major source of business and revenue for
bus companies, including school--and sports-related travel,
tourism, public events, weddings, you name it, has been
severely restricted or eliminated over the past 14 months.
Now I recognize that the Department of Treasury is
responsible for the administration of the CERTS Program, but
despite the fact that the program was enacted into law over 6
months ago, not a single dollar has reached these entities that
are struggling to survive.
Given that DOT has provided technical expertise and
guidance to Treasury on this program, would you be willing to
reach out to Treasury to see if you could use the expertise
with dealing with these transportation companies to expedite
this relief?
If they have to wait another 2 months to actually get the
money, now that the portal has been set up, it's going to be a
real problem. Many of them will not survive.
Secretary Buttigieg. We absolutely stand ready to support
Treasury in this. As you know, Treasury has the lead but we
have a lot of relationships and data and expertise when it
comes to the motor-coach industry and we want to deploy that in
order to be helpful.
We did consult with them, knowing how important this is to
you, Senator Reed, and others on this committee. We're advised
that the portal is set to go live and be ready to take
applications this month and recognize, of course, that putting
an application in is just one step.
We'll also do everything we can to make sure that that aid
is flowing as promptly and responsibly as possible.
Senator Collins. My hope is that we're not going to see
another two-month delay once the applications are received.
That would be truly tragic for a lot of these buses that are
used by lower income people, by schools. So I hope that you
will help us on that.
I raised in my opening statement my concern about rural
communities being left behind and my concern is prompted in
part by the fact that the department has changed some of its
criteria for rating applications for the BUILD Grants or the
RAISE Grants, as we call them now, and I'm very pleased to say
that both Maine and I know Rhode Island, as well, were
successful in all 11 rounds of BUILD grants from 2009 to 2020,
and in the case of Maine, we've received 250 million since its
inception.
I want to make sure that rural states like Maine remain
competitive and get a fair shake in RAISE going forward. So my
concern is that if you're weighing factors that simply aren't
relevant to rural communities, that don't exist in rural
communities that rural communities are going to be at a
disadvantage in applying for these grants.
Given the changes that you've made, how can you ensure that
rural communities will still be treated fairly and be
competitive in getting funding?
Secretary Buttigieg. It is certainly our intent to make
sure that rural communities no less than urban benefit from the
RAISE Program, and I thank this committee and you for your
support of this program.
I should also note that Congress makes very clear the
expectation of 50/50 split with regard to the RAISE Program and
other discretionary programs also have that, and, we will
maintain fidelity to that Congressional intent.
I would also add that the original NOFO requirements from
the past are intact. We've added clarifications about other
things we consider important but do not regard those as being
systematically to the disadvantage of rural communities,
whether we're talking about climate considerations, which
affect every community in America, or equity considerations,
which will certainly look different in different parts of the
country, but in one way or another are meaningful everywhere.
It certainly should not systematically be to the
disadvantage of one part of the country or one scale of
community or another.
Senator Collins. Thank you.
Senator Schatz. Senator Murray.
Senator Murray. Thank you, Chairman Schatz and Ranking
Member Collins.
Secretary Buttigieg, good to see you. Thank you for being
here today.
I just want to say I was really pleased to see the proposed
levels of investment for the Department of Transportation in
the President's budget, especially with regard to transit
funding and the TIGER-BUILD-RAISE Discretionary Grant Program
and I certainly appreciate the renewed focus on climate change,
sustainability, and equitability. So thank you for that.
And with that in mind, I also want to thank you and the
President for allocating money in the fiscal year 2022 budget
for two Washington projects in the Capital Investment Grant
Program. We've already talked about them before and the
importance of the projects.
It's the South King County BRT I Line and the Pacific
Avenue Route 7 BRT Project. So I appreciate your work on that,
but I do want to urge you and the FTA Administrator Fernandez
to work with our transit agencies on the ground out there to
get what we need for the grant agreement. I look forward to
working with you on that.
Secretary Buttigieg. We're certainly committed to working
with you on that and delighted whenever we're able to deliver
for a community through CIG.
Senator Murray. Great. I also want to thank you and the
department for the allocation of millions of dollars to support
transit projects in Washington State funds from the American
Rescue Plan. That money is so critical to keeping workers on
the jobs and trains and buses moving on time and I just want to
join everybody in urging you to get that money out as fast as
possible.
Investing in our transit systems and our agencies is really
important as we talk about reauthorizing the nation's surface
transportation programs and an infrastructure package. So I
would like to ask you for your support of the Public Transit
Capital Investment Relief Act.
I introduced that earlier this year and it's a bill that
will provide really needed relief to public transportation
agencies through the Capital Investment Grant Program by
increasing the Federal cost-share by an additional 30 percent
of the total project cost and would really love to have your
support on that.
Secretary Buttigieg. Thank you. I look forward to reviewing
how we would be able to put that into practice and thank you
for your support of transit. They've been hurting a lot with
what happened to their fare box revenue and their operations.
The Rescue Plan went a long way, but there's a lot more we
can do to support our transit.
Senator Murray. Great. I also want to bring up the issue of
fish culverts which I know is something that nobody here has
probably has talked to you about, but I know that Senator
Cantwell and I have been talking with you a lot about and that
is so important to Washington State, how it's important to
restoring our salmon runs in the Pacific Northwest. It's
important to our constituents and I won't dwell on the details
or the background, but we know that one really crucial piece of
salmon recovery is this culvert repair and replacement and
other fish passage and habitat restoration plans.
These projects create jobs. They drive economic
development. They combat the effects of climate change and they
help us meet tribal treaty obligations which is why I believe
they belong in an infrastructure package and to that end, I
recently co-sponsored the Bridge Investment Act which would
make culvert projects eligible for two new major bridge
programs.
As you know, I'm working very closely with Senator Cantwell
on this issue and I just for the committee want to highlight
the great work she's done in the Commerce Committee, Surface
Transportation title, which she's done a great job on, but it
proposes to invest four billion in the repair and removal of
fish culverts. That's really of critical importance to our
state.
By the way, it's also a bipartisan issue. So I hope that
you and your team, Mr. Secretary, can take some time to review
the Commerce Committee's proposal and work with us and our
staffs to find a path forward on this important issue for us.
Secretary Buttigieg. Well, thank you. I know how important
it is to your region and would welcome the chance to work with
you on that.
Senator Murray. Great. And, as always, thank you for all
the work and time you put into all these critical projects. I
look forward to continuing conversations and appreciate your
coming here today.
So thank you.
Senator Schatz. Senator Boozman.
Senator Boozman. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you,
Secretary, for being here today.
First of all, I want to thank you for being so helpful in
regard to the I-40 Bridge. That is a very serious situation.
For those of you that don't know, the I-40 bridge connecting
Arkansas to Tennessee is in the middle of a serious repair and
it is a truly major hub, costing trucking about $2.4 million
each day, along with just all those that travel that bridge. So
you've done outstanding. Your staff has been very, very
helpful. We would appreciate it if you would continue, and I
know you will, but also as we look through the 2022 funding
request, you know, seeing if there's anything that we can do,
perhaps the Federal Government, to be of help as we go forward.
Again, that certainly was not something that Arkansas and
Tennessee planned for, but like I say, we really do appreciate
your help very, very much.
Secretary Buttigieg. Thank you and appreciate the
communication with your team and your recognition of our team
working hard. Your sense of urgency and your invitation to come
along with your Arkansas and Tennessee colleagues to see it for
ourselves led to a trip that was--
Senator Boozman. And you did. You came immediately and
again so I do appreciate that.
Secretary Buttigieg. Thank you.
Senator Boozman. That was, I think, a real boost and as you
know, it's just a classic example of, you know, your leadership
and then the state DOT's jumping in, Coast Guard was helpful,
and there for a while we had the Mississippi River shut down.
So, you know, you can imagine the impact of that with trade. So
again thank you for really setting the bar in a very, very good
way.
Contract Tower Program is one of FAA's most successful
government/industry partnerships and as you well know has very
strong bipartisan/bicameral support in Congress. As validated
numerous times by the Department of Transportation, DOT
Inspector General, the program continues to provide high-
quality, cost-effective, and critical air traffic control
services to over 250 smaller airports throughout our nation's
air transportation system, including five in Arkansas.
Given the critical importance of contract towers to Rural
America's smaller airports, what steps are DOT and FAA taking
to work collaboratively with industry to ensure the continued
success of rural airports that depend on contract towers?
Secretary Buttigieg. Thank you for the question, Senator.
We certainly recognize the important role that these towers
play in our air traffic organization and our national air space
overall, and we're committed to making sure, especially with
regard to the modernization of the overall system, that every
element of it is successful, whether we're talking about the
biggest airports with the most directly-controlled Federal
resources or rural airports that rely on the Contract Tower
Program, EAS, and other forms of support.
That is why you'll see in the President's request a very
robust level of funding requested to support FAA and this
continuing work. Obviously there's a lot going on with next
generation air traffic control that will be a multiyear
journey, but we certainly want to make sure that the contract
towers are successful in every dimension of deploying that.
Senator Boozman. Good. Thank you, Mr. Secretary.
As you're well aware, we are seeing an uptick of drunk-
impaired driving in the U.S. with marijuana legalization, not
to mention the opioid crisis.
Would you agree your fiscal year 2022 drunk-driving
initiatives from a safety perspective and talk for a moment
about the need for more research on the issue?
Secretary Buttigieg. Thank you for raising that, Senator.
Alarmingly, even though there was considerably less driving
than normal in 2020, our traffic safety data is showing that
shockingly there were more fatalities and crashes, and it
indicates that we've really got our work cut out for us.
In fact, we saw some of the worst numbers since 2007. Part
of this relates to drunk or impaired driving, part of it
relates to speeding, part of it relates to not wearing
seatbelts, and, of course, any time more than one of those
factors interact, it makes a crash that much more likely to be
fatal. It's why the budget request includes resources for NHTSA
to continue both on the research side making sure that we're
really understanding and analyzing what the data tells us about
the causes and also on the behavior side because we have
resources to step up public communication about just how much
of a life or death difference it can make to drive safely.
We'll be happy to work with you to offer more detail if
that's of interest.
Senator Boozman. Very good. Thank you.
Secretary Buttigieg. Thank you.
Senator Boozman. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Schatz. Senator Coons.
Senator Coons. Thank you, Chairman Schatz, and Vice Chair
Collins, both for this hearing and for your leadership on this
committee.
Secretary Buttigieg, it is so wonderful to be with you at
this important moment in the future of transportation. We have
an opportunity and I hope it's one we'll seize on a bipartisan
basis to provide robust funding for investment in America's
infrastructure to make it both more competitive and more
relevant to the context and the time we're in.
Amtrak is, of course, my first question, and I appreciate
the President's request to increase Amtrak baseline funding by
35 percent from fiscal year 2021. We need steady annual funding
to both maintain and improve our passenger rail network.
I'm leading the annual Dear Colleague Letter in support of
that requested funding for Amtrak for fiscal year 2022.
The budget also requests a generation investment through
the American Jobs Plan, that framework, for Amtrak needed to
address the repair backlog which is about $42 billion in the
Northeast Corridor.
Can you talk about how the annual budget request would work
in concert with the American Jobs Plan?
Secretary Buttigieg. Thank you. I often say that in this
Administration, I can only ever aspire to be the second biggest
Amtrak enthusiast, but I'm trying to make it a close second,
and as you note, there is a repair backlog, a great deal of
need, and a great deal of value to be unlocked by making sure
that Americans can count on the highest standard of passenger
rail service.
We regard the $4.0 billion budget request, which represents
a 35 percent increase, as a foundation. It's an example of what
we need to do, frankly, in order to be able to continue to
enjoy the service that we have, especially knowing what Amtrak
went through with COVID, and I want to thank the Congress for
the Rescue Plan being an important part of how we kept that
from leading to the furloughs and route cuts that we might have
seen.
But as you know, we would have to go considerably further
to really deliver the kind of passenger rail service that
Americans deserve, and that's why you see such high levels of
funding. $85 million is envisioned in the President's Jobs Plan
for rail overall in this country.
We view this as both making sure that we are doing the
right thing through the annual process and making sure we have
the generational investment.
Senator Coons. And if I could just briefly, Mr. Secretary,
if we go ahead and make that generational investment in dealing
with the backlog for state of good repair, how would that
impact our annual budget going forward in terms of Amtrak?
Secretary Buttigieg. What we know is that repairs don't get
any cheaper. I want to make sure I was clear. The $4.0 billion
is for FRA and $2.7 billion of that is envisioned for Amtrak.
We can either make the right repairs now and pay for them or we
can pay more in the future.
Unlike roads where we have a Highway Trust Fund or airports
where there's also a trust fund, there isn't that kind of
multiyear mechanism when it comes to rail, but we envision
continuing to work with Congress to have that steady annual
support and relieving some of these mounting costs of deferred
maintenance that, candidly, was needed years ago, which is part
of what the Jobs Plan can help address.
Senator Coons. We first got to know each other through our
shared experience in local government and we both witnessed the
ways in which the threat of climate change for vulnerable
communities needs a response. My home state, the lowest mean
elevation state in America, faces some real threats from rising
sea level as do a number of other states represented on this
committee.
I'm excited about funding for the climate research, the
continuation of the Clean Program, something that I worked to
extend in the 2018 FAA reauthorization.
I'm interested in how some of the programs in this budget
request, in particular the National Resilient Communities
Challenge, will increase the capability and the capacity of
local communities to build resilience in the face of climate
change.
Secretary Buttigieg. Well, as you know and as we both
experienced in local government, it really is communities that
are on the front line. Of course, there are national and even
international steps that need to be taken to mitigate climate
change, but ultimately it comes down to a particular bridge, a
particular dam, a particular neighborhood impacted by climate.
With things like the Resilient Communities Challenge incentives
and ways to boost the innovation that's happening locally--
often communities are innovating out of absolute necessity but
would benefit from having a Federal hand, both to help them
pursue these innovations and to lift up and spread them to
other communities that could benefit.
This is an important part of how we can make sure that that
resilience really is set up for the changes that are coming in
the severity and frequency of extreme weather events, no matter
how good we are at responding to the climate challenge.
Senator Coons. Two more questions, if I might, Mr.
Secretary.
First, a bill, very broadly bipartisan bill, called Driving
for Opportunity. We've talked about it before, but I commend
the Administration's focus on equity. This is a bill that is
literally supported by the FOP, the Chamber of Commerce,
Americans for Prosperity, the ACLU, and Lawyers Committee for
Civil Rights under Law, and dozens of others.
It essentially incentivizes ending the practice of
suspending drivers' licenses for those who cannot pay fees and
fines not related to traffic safety just because they're poor.
I'd be interested in your view on the issue of debt-based
license suspension as a matter of economic and racial
inequality in terms of access to the opportunity to drive and
to be employed.
Secretary Buttigieg. One of the poverty traps that exists
is the inability to access a car which is needed in order to be
able to get to work, in order to be able to get out of poverty,
and often these kinds of obstacles are part of that.
As you mentioned, safety is one thing and we have to make
sure always that we're looking after safety, but when it's not
related to safety, I do think that there's an opportunity to
expand the ability to access good-paying jobs.
I can tell you firsthand, so often when we were working
with people ready to turn around what had been potentially
violent lives and get on to a better pathway forward, or when
we were looking at people who had no interaction with the
criminal justice system but were in these cycles of poverty, in
both cases it is very important to make sure that we tear down
obstacles to being able to get to where people need, whether
that's equitable access to transit or, as you say, reducing the
kinds of suspensions that make it difficult to for people to
drive themselves.
Senator Coons. Last question, if I could. One of the
reasons to pursue bipartisan legislation around transportation
is to give the department authorizations, the ability to do
things that can't be accomplished under current law.
Could you just briefly mention any of the reforms, things
like rebranding BUILD, creating PRIME, dealing with state of
good repair, where the department hopes to accomplish something
that cannot be accomplished under current law?
Secretary Buttigieg. Just very briefly, I'll mention two.
You spoke to PRIME, which is important, in addition to our
funding request for Amtrak, because it can support not only
Amtrak but other passenger rail services that are so important.
The authorization to do that would allow us to do so much more.
I would also return to the theme of Thriving Communities.
The authorization to make sure that Federal dollars are helping
where Federal dollars may in the past have been harming is a
great way to meet the equity objectives of this Administration
and lift up communities as a whole.
Senator Coons. Terrific. Thank you very much, Mr.
Secretary.
Senator Schatz. Senator Kennedy.
Senator Kennedy. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Secretary, thank you for being here. Last Congress we
passed a bill, I think it was called The Pipes Act, which
called for the creation, the establishment of an LNG Center of
Excellence, and I think we asked the Department of
Transportation to give us a report about the establishment of
the center.
It's obviously important to my state. We are the leading
exporter of LNG, liquefied natural gas, and I suspect we will
be for a while.
Do you know when we can expect that report, Mr. Secretary?
I know you have a lot on your plate but.
Secretary Buttigieg. I'll make sure to look into that and
get back to you. We're working to keep up with a number of the
authorizations and expectations in the PIPES Act, and I'll
check with the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety
Administration (PHMSA) to see where they stand.
Senator Kennedy. Yeah. How many times have you testified
since you've been Secretary in Congress?
Secretary Buttigieg. Well, I think this would be my third
in the Senate and I've got something like three in the House.
Senator Kennedy. Yeah. Congress whines a lot, doesn't it?
Secretary Buttigieg. I doubt it would be my place to say
that, Senator.
Senator Kennedy. It's because we've given up all our
authority to you guys.
Speaking of whining, let me talk to you a little bit
about--give me your thoughts about liquefied natural gas.
Secretary Buttigieg. It certainly represents part of an
``all of the above'' fuel strategy for the U.S. I don't want to
venture outside my lane as the Transportation Secretary.
Senator Kennedy. I know, but you've thought about it--
Secretary Buttigieg. I think more about other energy but--
Senator Kennedy [continuing]. and you're influential. Is it
part of our energy future?
Secretary Buttigieg. Well, it's certainly part of our
energy present.
Senator Kennedy. I'll agree with that. You think it's part
of our energy future?
Secretary Buttigieg. It's not part of a zero emissions
means, for example, of fueling light duty vehicles, but there
are a lot of applications where electrifying is certainly not
in the near future. To the extent that LNG or any kind of
natural gas offers fewer emissions than diesel or some of the
more carbon-intensive forms of fossil fuels, then at the very
least it can be attractive as a bridge.
Senator Kennedy. Well, and in the last decade, the United
States has reduced its CO2 emissions and in the last decade,
China, for example, which emits more CO2 than any other country
in the history of ever, has increased its CO2 emissions.
Why have we been going down and China's been going up?
Secretary Buttigieg. What I'll say is I certainly wouldn't
want to emulate China in that regard. I hope that we can
continue to drive the--
Senator Kennedy. Well, I didn't suggest we should, but why
has China been going up? Forget China for a second. Why have we
been going down?
Secretary Buttigieg. I'd like to think it's because of the
U.S. tradition of leading the world in doing the right thing.
Senator Kennedy. Natural gas is part of it, isn't it?
Secretary Buttigieg. I would say that's more of a how than
why, I guess, in my way of thinking, which is maybe why I
missed your question, but certainly conversions from coal or
diesel to gas have had climate benefits.
Senator Kennedy. So if we liquefy natural gas and we sell
it to a country at a reasonable price that, let's say, for
example, uses coal, isn't the world better off in terms of the
environment?
Secretary Buttigieg. If those were the only two choices,
then yes.
Senator Kennedy. At what point do you think realistically
in terms of available, affordable energy sources without
taxpayers having to subsidize it we're going to have other
options?
Secretary Buttigieg. With regard to cars and light duty
vehicles and increasingly things like pickup trucks, that day
has come. For other applications, it may be further out.
Senator Kennedy. But when?
Secretary Buttigieg. Well, again, yesterday when it comes
to vehicles. For other applications, I'd probably defer to the
Secretary of Energy for more sophisticated insights, but, of
course, it depends on the industry.
Senator Kennedy. Yeah. What are your thoughts about
petrochemical production?
Secretary Buttigieg. Generally?
Senator Kennedy. Yeah.
Secretary Buttigieg. Well, it's certainly part of our
economy and part of how a lot of goods and materials are made.
Senator Kennedy. Yeah. Do you think we ought to phase those
plants out?
Secretary Buttigieg. If there are ways to produce products
that create less harm, then of course we'll want to develop
toward those, as industry generally does when we find that
there's a less emissions-intensive or less toxic way to do
something.
Senator Kennedy. Do you think we'll still be exporting
liquefied natural gas and it will still be a major source of
energy and contributing to a cleaner environment compared to
coal, for example, in 10 years?
Secretary Buttigieg. I would want to defer to the EIA for
those kinds of forecasts.
Senator Kennedy. Yeah. But what do you think? You read a
lot. What do you think?
Secretary Buttigieg. I think that the sooner the U.S. can
get to zero emissions in any given industry, the better off the
world and the U.S. are going to be.
Senator Kennedy. Sure. I understand that, but how about in
10 years?
Secretary Buttigieg. I don't know, Senator.
Senator Kennedy. How about 20?
Secretary Buttigieg. Again, Senator, I don't know.
Senator Kennedy. What would be your preference?
Secretary Buttigieg. My preference would be that we're able
to meet our energy needs by means that don't contribute to the
climate problem.
Senator Kennedy. Okay. And does that to you mean no fossil
fuels?
Secretary Buttigieg. Well, certainly in terms of burning
them up, unless we're talking about things like sustainable
aviation fuels that hold the promise, not yet fully realized,
of lower life cycle emissions. But ultimately if we can power a
given vehicle or widget or industry without setting anything on
fire, that's a benefit to the climate and a benefit to the
country.
Senator Kennedy. Do you think it's possible--this will be
my last one, Mr. Chairman. Do you think it's possible with
carbon capture, sequestration, and utilization, it's possible
to burn fossil fuels cleanly?
Secretary Buttigieg. There's a lot of promise and a lot of
benefit to CCUS. I hope we wouldn't lean on it as a crutch to
get us out of our obligations to take more immediate steps that
we ought to take.
Senator Kennedy. Do you think we ought to try it?
In other words, before we take our energy policy and we
take our sources of energy and just throw them out the window
and start over, don't you think for a fraction of the cost we
ought to try to clean up what we have now?
Secretary Buttigieg. It depends how we think about the
cost, right? If we're factoring in the full cost of the
toxicity and the emissions of a lot of the fuels we depend on
now, then apples to apples, we're already there in terms of the
benefits of more renewable sources of energy that exist right
here in the United States coast-to-coast. The sooner we can be
using those the better off we're going to be because we don't
have a lot of time, Senator.
Senator Schatz. Senator Van Hollen.
Senator Van Hollen. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Secretary, great to see you again, and I want to start
by commending you on a number of items in the budget. You
mentioned Thriving Communities to address situations where
Federal transportation projects have actually divided
communities.
You and I have talked previously about what we call the
``highway to nowhere'' in West Baltimore, a highway that was
started, never completed, but still divides a community in
Baltimore, and I'm pleased there are also funds proposed as
part of the American Jobs Plan there.
I want to commend you on the Amtrak request and, as well,
your Capital Investment Grants increase request.
You've been a mayor of South Bend, Indiana. You may have
experienced a situation where local governments have really
important transit projects that they want to move forward, but
the state that they're in is not supportive and therefore it
becomes difficult to access the necessary funds to complete
that project.
We have that situation in Maryland. You visited Prince
George's County. We were together when we were at the UPS Hub
for the distribution of vaccines. Prince George's County has
about 900,000 people. They want to establish a rapid transit
connection with a county to their south, Charles County, which
has over a 100,000 people. These two counties together have a
population bigger than a couple states and yet it's been really
difficult for them to get the State of Maryland to support
their proposed transit project.
Finally, the State Legislature passed something this year
to do it. The Governor didn't sign it, but he didn't veto it.
So that's the good news.
As we look through the budget, and I really need your help
not just today but going forward, these kind of projects,
right, it's a kind of medium-sized project, it's a transit
system between two counties becoming very congested, you look
at the Federal transportation formulas and as you and I have
discussed previously, states have an incentive when they have a
fixed number of dollars to go for highways. They get a higher
Federal match, much higher.
The process is easier. The state just makes a decision to
go and then they can draw down those funds, whereas for
transit, you've got to go through a pretty cumbersome process
to get the go-ahead and then, as I see it, we get about on
average in the United States today about 54 percent Federal
match.
I'm looking at what's now called the RAISE Grant Program.
It's a billion dollars. This committee has said, I think, $30
million of that should be used for planning grants. I just want
to be clear that that is a floor, not a ceiling.
So for counties like Prince George's and Charles County
where the state's not really stepped up in a significant way,
it would be very helpful if we could work with you to--you
know, RAISE Grants can be used for planning, but if we're
really looking at 30 million, if we look it as a cap
nationally, it's going to be impossible for lots of Prince
George's County and Charles Counties to be able to access those
funds.
So I want to work with you to make sure that the 730
million above the cap is also looked at by DOT for planning
purposes and beyond that just your thoughts about how counties
in this kind of situation that want to build a transit and are
willing to put a good amount of money in but don't have the
ability to write the entire check, how they would go about
doing it.
Is it the RAISE Grant? Is that the way they go these days?
If that's the case, we need to do a lot better in terms of a
national program.
Secretary Buttigieg. First of all, the point's well taken
about support for planning. That's especially important in
order to get resources out equitably to communities that may
not always have the same resources, counties that may not have
the same resources.
More generally with regard to supporting transit, we need
to acknowledge that there is a national benefit, as well, to
driving more successful transit uptake. There's certainly a
climate benefit, a congestion benefit, and an efficiency
benefit. We work with what Congress provides but are also eager
to continue building that, and that's why the President's Job
Plans calls for us to double Federal support for transit.
Our Department stands ready to help facilitate that as well
as through existing programs. You mentioned RAISE. I'd also
point to the Capital Investment Grants Program, which has been
successful and popular, and so many of these programs are
getting more applications coming in than we're in a position to
fund.
Senator Van Hollen. I appreciate that. [Off microphone] not
easily, but it is a clear path toward having that happen and
when you've got this kind of regional transit project.
So I really look forward to working with you. This is a big
priority of the State of Maryland.
Thank you.
Secretary Buttigieg. Thank you.
Senator Collins. Thank you.
First, let me say how wonderful it feels to be holding the
gavel even for a very short time once again.
Senator Hoeven.
Senator Hoeven. I hear you, Ranking Member Collins.
[Laughter.]
Senator Hoeven. Mr. Secretary, thanks for being here. Good
to see you again.
Give me your thoughts. Right now there's an effort to put
together a bipartisan package on infrastructure. I think the
number right now is about 950 billion over five, would range up
to maybe 1.1 to 1.2 over eight. A variety of pay fors that we
talked about when I was at the White House and you were there,
focuses on pretty much traditional infrastructure, although
some of the things that, you know, people feel aren't
infrastructure.
So that's a work in progress, but undoubtedly you've been
briefed on it and obviously have been part of the
conversations. Give me your thoughts on whether that's close to
something that you think could get support from the
Administration and in fact pass.
Secretary Buttigieg. We're certainly encouraged by the
conversations that continue. I'd like to believe even if there
isn't a consensus on exactly what to do and how to do it,
there's a consensus that we've got to do something big and
we've got to do something bold and we've got to do something
right away, and I can feel that shared sense of urgency
animating these talks.
I am hopeful that something could emerge that will have the
support needed in this chamber as well as be something that the
President and the Administration can support and in the other
chamber as well. I hope we work on the principle that we don't
want to be doing all this work just so we can stay in 13th
place but that if we come together and commit the real
resources that are needed, it can make it possible for America
to continue to be in a position to lead the world.
Senator Hoeven. So short version would be you're kind of
onboard with the work but remaining and kind of watching to see
what the final package looks like or you're engaged in terms of
modifying the package or kind of, you know, maybe just a little
more detail on where you're at with it.
Secretary Buttigieg. I haven't seen the latest paper on
where you and some of your colleagues are converging and would
want to have a better feel for the composition of it, but
certainly in principle, if there can be bipartisan agreement.
Senator Hoeven. So it'd be fair to say if Senator Collins
thinks it's okay, you think it's okay?
Secretary Buttigieg. Well, that might not be fair to
Senator Collins, but that would certainly be encouraging. Every
additional Senator who thinks it's okay means that it has a
better shot of advancing.
Senator Hoeven. Have you had a chance to look at the Move
America aspect? Senator Wyden and I have introduced that, again
would provide bonding authority to try to get, you know, the
public/private partnerships and private dollars into the
equation, as well, would generate about $226 billion, and
either that or there's been a revolving loan concept, too, but
some mechanism like that again to help, you know, fund it.
Secretary Buttigieg. I think those mechanisms have a lot of
promise, and they are built or they could build on the Build
America Bureau, which is the resource we have within the
Department of Transportation, including private activity bonds.
I don't think it can wholly substitute for other robust
sources of Federal support, but certainly if we can unlock more
sources of capital to build our infrastructure, we should give
it a really good look.
Senator Hoeven. Right. A piece of the puzzle, yeah, and
then this one I think you'll relate to in terms of livestock
hauling. We've got to have more flexibility under the hours of
service rules for our livestock haulers.
The latest provisions that have gone through Commerce
relate to the Hauls Act, the bill that I support, and again it
in essence exempts because of loading and unloading, a 150-mile
radius of where you start when you're hauling live animals and
when you end up in terms of the hours of service rules, so that
you have the flexibility you need both to make sure you can
load and unload your animals and, of course, it relates to the
comfort and the humane treatment for hauling livestock.
If that passes, which I think it will, I would ask for your
support in its implementation.
Secretary Buttigieg. We'll do everything we can to properly
implement what comes from Congress, as we always seek to do,
and we recognize that hauling live cattle, for example, is not
the same thing as a truckload of printer paper, and it's
important to be able to tell the difference.
Senator Hoeven. Very important, and I know you understand
the difference coming from Indiana.
Last question I have. Would you believe that one of the 25
busiest airports in the United States is in my state of North
Dakota?
Secretary Buttigieg. I would now, Senator.
Senator Hoeven. One of the 25 busiest. So it's the Grand
Forks Airport and in large part it's because the University of
North Dakota has a fleet of more than a hundred aircraft there
and the largest pilot training university in the country. So,
in addition to the regular commercial traffic, they're
constantly landing and taking off all these students and they
teach everything from fixed wing to rotary to jet to air
traffic control, all these things. Like I said, a fleet of more
than a hundred aircraft.
We need a new control tower and so I would just ask for
your support to work with FAA that we can--you know, and this
expansion projects underway.
Secretary Buttigieg. Okay.
Senator Hoeven. I'm just asking and I'm apprising you of
it, why it's important because we need pilots and asking for
your help and support with it.
Secretary Buttigieg. Well, I learned something new today
and I'll make sure to follow up on that.
Senator Hoeven. Thank you, Mr. Secretary. Appreciate it.
Secretary Buttigieg. Thank you.
Senator Hoeven. Thank you, Ranking Member.
Senator Collins. Thank you, Senator.
Senator Reed, my partner on Transportation for so many
years. Great to see you.
Senator Reed. Thank you, Ranking Member, Acting Chairman,
very much.
Welcome, Mr. Secretary. Thank you for your great service.
We've all been, I think, shocked by the violence occurring
on commercial airplanes. Scenes of flight attendants being
literally attacked, 2,500 reports of unruly passengers
recently, about 20 times the average number throughout the
year, and the FAA's zero tolerance policy is in place but it
ends in September.
Will you work with the FAA to make it permanent?
Secretary Buttigieg. I would want to learn more about the
relevant authorities that will be needed, but I appreciate the
opportunity to express our strong view that there is absolutely
no excuse for unruly behavior, mistreatment, or abuse toward
flight crews. They are there for passenger safety. They have a
job to do, and we have no toleration for mistreatment of the
people who keep our flying public safe.
Senator Reed. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Secretary.
Last week we had the Attorney General before another
subcommittee and I posed a similar question to him. He
obviously agreed with you that this is extremely dangerous
behavior, unacceptable, etcetera.
Has the FAA, to your knowledge, referred any cases
involving physical violence to the Department of Justice for
prosecution, and, if not, will you commit to have a review
process so that these serious incidences are in fact referred
for serious prosecution?
Secretary Buttigieg. I'll make sure to look into that.
Senator Reed. Thank you very much. I want to join my
colleague, Senator Collins, in promoting the Search Program
where, through her leadership, I was the wing guy on the
operation, we were able to get it through for the trucking
industry, the busing industry, etcetera, and as you have
committed, you're going to help the Treasury Department get the
money out the door. It's there. We've got to get it out, and I
appreciate very much your commitment. Thank you.
RAISE Grants, which have a long history of different names
but the same basic idea, the last Administration, there was no
priorities for transit, none in highway programs, etcetera.
Will you commit to just think about and hopefully enact a
notion to give transit, bike, and pedestrian projects equal
consideration? My sense was they were dismissed, missicius, I
think, is the Latin word, but they're important to many
communities. Would you put them in a place where they could be
fairly considered?
Secretary Buttigieg. They absolutely ought to be and will
be considered consistent with statute. I believe the statute
calls for diversity of modes to be contemplated which makes it
all the more important not only as a matter of Administration
policy but our best effort at fidelity to Congressional intent,
to make sure we do so.
Senator Reed. And, indeed, you know, as a former mayor, you
recognize that, you know, key transportation projects could be
a bike path or could be something much different than just a
highway.
Secretary Buttigieg. That's right.
Senator Reed. And that language was not, I think, honored
in actual promotions or grants last year and before.
Last year the committee was able to provide $2 billion in
extra general funding for highway formal programs and including
$1 billion Bridge Rehabilitation Program and this funding made
a huge difference for my state of Rhode Island. We have the
worst bridges in the country but thanks to Senator Collins and
my colleagues in the committee, we've made some progress to fix
them.
The President's budget does not include additional general
fund dollars for these investments, but I hope the committee
will be able to do so that we can again fund the Rehabilitation
Program and other valuable programs.
In this case and looking at the President's budget, if we
stick with that budget, how will we fix the bridges which you
know in every state in the Union are, as you indicated, a
hundred years old and in Rhode Island try 200, so?
Secretary Buttigieg. This is one of the reasons why it's so
important that the American Jobs Plan move forward. The budget,
the surface reauthorization, all of these things can help
create a foundation, but we're dealing with a backlog of
repairs that are not going to get any cheaper, and we need a
major generational investment to help address it.
Senator Reed. Thank you, Mr. Secretary, and thank you for
your service. Thank you very much.
Secretary Buttigieg. Likewise, thank you.
Senator Schatz. Senator Braun.
Senator Braun. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Good to see you again, Mr. Secretary. Last Congress and
this Congress we got a bill through committee unanimously, I
think, to reauthorize and protect the Highway Trust Fund. That
went through regular order. It's there bipartisan.
Why not get that across the finish line because the
insolvency will hit that fund next summer? I know we're
wrestling with anything from 27, 23, 17, now maybe 900 billion
to 12. This is clearly bipartisan. What's wrong with getting it
across the finish line and then coming back and looking at the
rest of it?
Secretary Buttigieg. We would view the investments we're
trying to make in the context of the Jobs Plan as addressing
something a little bit different from what you're talking
about.
We have a backlog of needs, a readiness to take our
infrastructure to the next level in this country, and a need to
find means to fund that once-in-a-generation investment.
But there's another parallel conversation, I agree, about
the Highway Trust Fund and different views on how to address
it--from the traditional model that we've relied on, which
Congress for some years now has supplemented with General Fund
transfers, to some other model that might make sense in the
future.
Respecting the pleasure of this committee and the rest of
Congress in exactly how to do it, our Department will stand
ready to deploy those funds as efficiently and promptly as
possible however they ultimately are sent our way.
Senator Braun. I think it'd be good to at least--I think
that would symbolize the fact that we're getting something
that's gone through some normal process and it's bipartisan and
it wouldn't preclude doing the broader package that you're
talking about.
This past Monday before I came back to D.C., I spoke to a
group of truckers in Indianapolis and they are concerned not
only about what I just asked about, also about getting truck
drivers to drive their units.
Senator Young and I have got the Drive Safe Act, which
would try to get through proper training once you're 18 years
old on the pathway so you don't lose that window of having to
wait 3 years before you can get someone trained to do that job
professionally, technically put some at risk in states that
have that broad geography anyway.
Indiana, the Crossroads of America, you go a 150 miles east
or west, you're triggered into needing that stipulation that
you're 21 years old. Is that something we can get done?
Secretary Buttigieg. It's something we can explore provided
we satisfy any safety concerns that arise with it.
Experienced drivers are the safest drivers, but you've got
to begin getting experience at some point and we're also very
attuned to the concerns about potential driver shortages. I had
a similar experience speaking with trucking companies and
hearing a lot about this and the President has asked me, along
with Secretaries Vilsack, Raimondo, and others to participate
in a supply chain task force addressing some of the supply
chain issues we face. There's no question that making sure
trucking is in good shape is a big part of that equation.
Our commitment is to look for solutions that balance
safety, economic need, and all of the other considerations that
are affecting us because it is a real concern.
Senator Braun. Would it make sense to maybe phase it in,
try it, maybe not go full scale across the country, but owning
a trucking company myself before I got here, it is the biggest
issue we contend with along with the fact that that pathway in
life, along with many other career and technical education-type
jobs, high demand, high wage, you know, gets almost stigmatized
against in terms of guidance that you get going through high
school.
So there's a lot working against that and no one's wanting
to sacrifice safety shortcuts. We'd just like a little bit of
agility in entrepreneurialism from this place when it comes to
solving problems that have been around for that long.
We've talked about this before, how to pay for things. Come
from our great state. We believe in rainy day funds, balanced
budgets, living within our means, thinking big but paying our
bills. That's the exact opposite of your new employer here. I
found that out when I got here two and a half years ago.
Why don't we look there to be a little bit more
adventuresome entrepreneurial? The private sector's got a
balance sheet that is strong. The markets show that. The
balance sheet here is terrible and getting worse by the year.
It's gone from 20 trillion maybe to 30 trillion in terms of
debt and we are not savers and investors anymore, we're
spenders and consumers.
So why don't we tap through public/private partnerships,
the capital that's out there, and put that to work and allow
states like Indiana and others that are savers to maybe have
more access to Federal dollars if they put more skin in the
game?
Secretary Buttigieg. Well, as you note, in Indiana, things
were a little different when I was mayor. We did our budget in
cash.
There are some different principles that apply to Federal
budgeting. If we can unlock private capital in a responsible
way without sacrificing public policy goals or goods, we ought
to.
On the other hand, it's the markets above all that remind
us that Federal debt isn't like any other kind of debt, and I
would make sure that we don't put ourselves in the position of
a business that could have made a great investment but didn't
because they didn't think it was permissible to do so.
Senator Braun. The modern monetary theory I debated Senator
Sanders for about 25 minutes a month ago on. If you're bored
some evening, take a peek at that and see the difference of
opinion on how we can keep running these deficits and then
turning it into Federal debt when we don't have the willpower
generally now that we had coming out of World War II, again
where we were savers and investors, not spenders and consumers.
I always enjoy the conversation.
Secretary Buttigieg. Likewise, thank you.
Senator Schatz. Love to see the Indiana friends spar.
A couple of questions about safety after the two crashes of
the 737 Max. The Aircraft Certification Safety and
Accountability Act was included in the Omnibus and it reflected
recommendations from numerous audits. Many of the critical
provisions in that bill require funding, but the budget
request, a $17 million increase for aviation safety well below
the $75 million authorized.
So I want you to speak to that discrepancy but also just
this general sense that folks have regarding the FAA and the
extent to which it views itself as a separate Cabinet agency
from the agency that you run.
I am all for the independence of expert agencies, but I
still think they belong under your oversight and under our
oversight and there is a sense, it may or may not be true, but
there is a sense of almost impunity with which they operate,
that they're not accountable certainly to the Congress or even
the Office of the Secretary, and I'm wondering if you might be
willing to address that as delicately as you want.
Secretary Buttigieg. The Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA) is a constituent modal agency of the U.S. Department of
Transportation. There's has been a lot of Congressional
interest in the FAA and an expectation that the FAA will be
responsive to Congress. I also expect that the FAA will be
responsive to Congress and responsive to the Department
whenever any oversight issues come up.
With regard to the numbers, I would just note that, in
addition to $17.5 million specifically for improving aviation
safety oversight, there's also a $57 million increase envision
for the aviation safety organization as a whole. Of course,
funding is only part of the equation when it comes to making
sure those safety imperatives are met, and that's where
oversight comes in.
Senator Schatz. Yeah. I just think we need more regulatory
staff. If you're going to enforce the law, you need people to
do so, and you need to be able to deploy them to various places
across the country.
The budget request of $51 million for Vehicle Safety
Programs, you spoke a little bit with Senator Boozman, I think,
about the increase in traffic fatalities.
I'm a little worried that we're focusing on vehicle safety
when it seems like we've got a problem of driver behavior,
right, and I'm wondering if you could speak to that particular
discrepancy but also just generally.
I know you don't want to get in front of any analysis from
your experts, but something is going on with traffic fatalities
skyrocketing as they are. It's absolutely counterintuitive. It
doesn't at least on its face necessarily appear to be just
people on their phones which would have been my instinct.
So I just don't know what's going on, and I don't want to
wait 3 years to find out what it is if you have an inkling of
what you think is going on and how we can get in front of it.
Secretary Buttigieg. I hesitate to share an inkling in a
Senate committee, but we know that speed is often a factor. It
may be that the reduced traffic as a consequence of COVID-19
led to increased opportunities for speeding, and one of the
things we're hoping to assess is whether the data bears out
that hypothesis.
We know that impaired driving, speeding, and failure to
wear a seatbelt all seem to be among the main behaviors that
drove the increase and as you say, it's alarming. The fatality
rate for 2020 was 1.37 per hundred million vehicle miles
traveled which is up from 1.11 just the year before.
As you mentioned, vehicle safety is one thing. Then there's
driver safety and then there's system safety. How are the roads
designed and are they inclined to make it more or less likely
that there will be a fatal crash?
We need to invest in all of those. The American Jobs Plan
envisions $19 billion for safety that would help improve not
only the safety of those who are in the vehicle but those who
are anywhere near a vehicle, like pedestrians or bicyclists.
Senator Schatz. This wasn't in my prepared questions, but
as a television watcher and also an Internet user, I wonder
what--you know, you see these Federal DOT-funded wear your
seatbelt and don't drunk driver television commercials.
Are you in other channels now because it seems to me that
anyone who's in the communications business needs to worry
about the extent to which plenty of people don't going to watch
TV anymore?
Secretary Buttigieg. Yeah. I don't know whether it happened
on its own or whether the algorithms figured out what I do for
a living, but I have noticed a little more on things like Hulu
that messages coming out of NHTSA are popping up.
I'll look into how we are getting into other media because
you're absolutely right that, especially given that age is an
important factor in the data for risk, we can't assume that the
targeted audience is watching television on the television.
Senator Schatz. Thank you very much.
Senator Collins.
Senator Collins. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Secretary, as I'm sure you know, the FAA has a next
generation air traffic system called NextGEN. It is intended to
modernize our nation's air traffic control system, to provide
safer, more efficient, less polluting routes, and to use
arrival and departure paths that will improve air space
utilization.
So every year that I've been on this committee, this
subcommittee, we have appropriated another billion dollars, it
seems, for FAA to implement NextGEN. So since 2007, Congress
has appropriated $13 billion.
So you can understand my dismay when I read a March 30th of
this year report by the Office of the Inspector General that
indicates that the system has not lived up to its promise.
Now part of it is that there have been COVID impacts. There
has been more traffic, but nevertheless the bottom line is not
an encouraging one, and the Inspector General says, ``We were
not able to identify any clear improvement to operations
overall. Instead, overall operations appear to have become less
efficient with average taxi time, departure delays, and arrival
delays all increasing over this period.''
If NextGEN worked as intended, we should see all of those
trends going in the other direction and by using performance-
based navigation, we could also assist in combating climate
change by promoting greater fuel savings and reduced emissions.
So what's going on with NextGEN that we poured $13 billion
and this is the result?
Secretary Buttigieg. Overhauling the entirety of the air
traffic system for any country, but certainly for this country
is a massive undertaking. Congress has high expectations, I
know, of NextGEN implementation, as do I. That implementation
is an ongoing process and not something that is simply from the
``before'' state to the ``after'' state change can be said now
we're there.
There are a lot of pieces coming into place and the funding
request in the President's budget advances that. This is very
important for the efficiency reasons that you mentioned,
including that climate benefit of reduced air time. I've seen
estimates suggesting about 15 percent fuel savings just from
more efficient routing, and we would hope to realize that as
well as some of the other efficiency gains that you were
mentioning from a fully-implemented NextGEN reality.
I will continue to consider this a priority for our
expectations of the FAA and do everything we can to keep
Congress updated on progress being made.
Senator Collins. That would be helpful. As you can imagine,
a billion dollars is a lot of money year after year after year,
though it doesn't seem so in this environment anymore, but it
used to be a lot of money, and to have push for this money year
after year after year and then see such poor results is very
disturbing. So I hope you will look into that.
I want to go to the issue next that Senator Jack Reed
raised. When I was flying back from Bangor, Maine, this
weekend, the two flight attendants sat down and talked to me
about the mask mandate and one of them, frankly, was frightened
about what would happen if she tries to enforce the mask
mandate and the violence we have seen is horrendous and
unthinkable and I join Senator Reed in saying that I hope
people will be prosecuted for the violence that we've seen on
videos.
However, both of the flight attendants raised with me the
issue of why is there still a mask mandate for airlines. The
CDC recently released recommendations significantly curtailing
mask requirements in both indoor and outdoor settings, and as
one passenger said to me, I can go sit at a bar and drink for
hours at a crowded bar now without wearing a mask and yet I
can't take a short flight from Bangor to Washington without
wearing my mask, despite the fact that the airplane has a far
better ventilation system than that crowded bar.
And I thought it was a very good question. I understand
that these decisions require an interagency process that
includes the CDC, DHS, and DOT, but could you discuss the
process for potentially lifting the mask mandate for air travel
provided that certain--I guess I'd like to know what are the
benchmarks or metrics that you're going to use given that the
CDC has lifted it in other places.
Secretary Buttigieg. Thank you for your expression of
support for flight attendants. I cannot emphasize enough how
seriously we take unruly behavior, and with the zero tolerance
policy, those who disrupt flight operations or cause harm or
are disrespecting and violating laws and regulations face fines
of up to $35,000. We want to make sure that it is not it's left
to the flight attendants alone to enforce mask mandates or any
other FAA regulation.
As to the mask mandates on planes, like many of the
traveling public, especially as I'm traveling more and more, I
share the impatience to be able to return to where they're not
required.
As you mentioned, this is an interagency process. It's
really driven by public health experts and we do everything we
can to run with that. They point to some differences and
uniqueness in the context of travel related to the number of
people from different places passing through the same small
space; a couple things would be different from the bar example.
One would be the presence of children onboard, knowing that
there's not yet a vaccine approved for children. Another is
that if I'm not too sure about the person sitting next to me in
the bar, I can get up and leave, but it's not the same in a
moving aircraft.
That being said, I do think this is something that we need
to continue to revisit. While I haven't seen a specific rubric
that says if we hit this benchmark, then we can say goodbye to
the masks, which I think we're all eager to do.
The sooner we get as many people as possible vaccinated,
the sooner we can get there and that's one of the reasons we're
continuing to push on that.
Senator Collins. Thank you. I have another mask-related
question which I'm going to submit for the record, but just to
give you the outlines of it, I'm hearing from commercial vessel
operators, like barges and tugs, from Portland Harbor that they
find the guidance on masks to be very inconsistent and
confusing and apparently the Coast Guard has a lot of
enforcement discretion and these operators of the tugs and
barges really don't want that kind of situation because they
don't know what rules they're supposed to follow if the Coast
Guard has discretion on enforcement.
So I will provide you with further information but would
appreciate your getting back to me.
Secretary Buttigieg. Okay.
Senator Collins. For the record on that, and, finally, I
just want to echo what the Chairman said about the university
transportation centers.
I'm very proud of the work that's being done under Hoby
Doger's leadership at the University of Maine. It's truly
absolutely extraordinary and some of this is the use of
sustainable advanced manufacturing structures, construction
methods, and it's resulted in real-world applications that
extend the life of bridges, in particular reduce the carbon
footprint of our transportation infrastructure projects.
Just recently, I went to the dedication of a bridge in
Herman, Maine, a short bridge that used all of these advanced
materials. Instead of steel girders, it had composite girders
and the asphalt is such that it won't have to be jack hammered
off when it needs to be replaced. Believe it or not, it's sort
of screwed on and so this is so innovative and so exciting and
this bridge is supposed to last for like a hundred years
because of the new materials.
But I share the Chairman's concern that although the
university's done a great job of trying to commercialize and
get this material out into the marketplace that it's hard to
make that transition from the laboratory to the real-life
application. I think the University of Maine's done a great job
at it but that's something that I think we really should look
at expanding the funding for the commercialization of those
materials.
So I just wanted to second what the Chairman said and
encourage you to take a look at that.
Secretary Buttigieg. I enthusiastically share your interest
in that and would welcome chances to work together on it.
Senator Collins. Great. Well, we'll have you up to the
University of Maine at some point.
Secretary Buttigieg. I'd love it.
Senator Collins. Because it truly is extraordinary, the
work that is being done there.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Schatz. Either right after or right before the
University of Hawaii.
Senator Collins. Actually a Maine to Hawaii trip, you know.
Secretary Buttigieg. That's very nice.
Senator Schatz. Pick the right month. Secretary Buttigieg,
I want to thank you for coming today to discuss the fiscal year
2022 Budget Request.
ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS
The hearing record will remain open until Friday, June
25th, to allow members to submit additional questions for the
record.
Questions Submitted by Senator Patrick J. Leahy
Question. A more substantial and expedient transition towards
electric and zero-emission transportation is critical to address the
worsening impacts of climate change. As costs of electric vehicle (EV)
technology continue to incrementally decrease, it has become easier and
easier for Americans to purchase EVs. However, in parts of the country
where colder temperatures reduce battery range, many buyers are
apprehensive about purchasing an EV as their primary mode of
transportation. Particularly in largely rural and car-dependent
communities, like those in Vermont, reduced battery range during the
winter poses a significant obstacle for many drivers.
An effective remedy for this challenge is a more comprehensive EV
charging station infrastructure. The Department of Transportation's FY
2022 budget request includes a request for $15 billion over five years
to be spent on EV charging infrastructure. The Federal Highway
Administration's (FHWA) Alternative Fuel Corridor designation has the
potential to support and incentivize the construction of new EV
charging infrastructure on some of the most-trafficked highways.
How will the Department ensure that EV charging infrastructure
funding is appropriately disbursed geographically to allow the most
car-dependent communities--specifically in colder and rural areas--to
transition to zero emission transportation?
Answer. Equitably distributing EV infrastructure to communities
that rely most on cars is very important. FHWA's Alternative Fuel
Corridors for EV infrastructure include existing and pending corridors
through rural areas and colder climates. DOT is focused on ensuring
that the pending corridors that do not yet have sufficient EV chargers
are completed. Additionally, DOT will capitalize on our partnership
with the Department of Energy and other Tribal, State, and local
governments to identify the most beneficial locations for EV
infrastructure. DOT is also developing a rural EV toolkit which will
help guide rural communities that are interested in installing EV
charging infrastructure. This builds on the Department's Rural
Opportunities to Use Transportation for Economic Success (ROUTES)
initiative to provide technical assistance to rural communities
interested in DOT programs.
Question. Specifically, how will the Department use this new
funding to better utilize the alternative fuel corridor program to
facilitate the adoption of EVs across a broader range of communities
and to connect more distant and rural areas to surrounding urban hubs?
Answer. DOT is focused on ensuring that corridors are completed in
order to provide for viable highway EV travel nationwide. DOT plans to
collaborate with partners and stakeholders to identify the best
locations for the installation of new EV infrastructure that will best
serve EV users across the country and provide connections between rural
and urban communities.
______
Questions Submitted by Senator Susan M. Collins
Question. Commercial vessels (both passenger and non-passenger)
find the CDC guidance on mask mandates for indoor and outdoor areas to
be very inconsistent and confusing. From a regulatory perspective, the
guidance gives U.S. Coast Guard Sector Commanders broad enforcement
discretion that has the potential for creating a patchwork of
conflicting interpretations. The U.S. Coast Guard's issuance is merely
guidance, however, and the CDC mask order remains in place for
commercial vessels. What is DOT's role in mask mandates for commercial
vessels?
Answer. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), through the U.S.
Coast Guard, has the statutory authority for the safety of commercial
vessels. DOT therefore does not have a regulatory role in determining
or enforcing the CDC mask requirements for vessels. Through DOT's
Maritime Administration, DOT does manage the readiness of Federal
sealift assets such as Ready Reserve Force ships. DOT applies all
applicable mask requirements mandated by the CDC.
Question. What more can DOT be doing to help lift the mask mandate
for commercial vessels and create more certainty for commercial vessel
operators?
Answer. DOT is working very closely with the transportation
industry and Federal partners to keep transportation networks safe and
operational while the Nation combats COVID-19. This includes working
with DHS, which has statutory authority for the safety of commercial
vessels to apply all applicable mandates to the Federal sealift assets
within the DOT purview and, through continued engagement with
interagency partners and the maritime industry on Federal COVID-19
response, provide timely information and assistance to stakeholders.
______
Questions Submitted by Senator Mike Braun
Question. Sec. 24405 of the FAST Act of 2015 created a streamlined
regulatory structure to enable small volume motor vehicle manufacturers
to produce brand-new classically styled replica cars that meet current
emissions standards.
American companies will be able to manufacture everything from
1930s hot rods to 1960s cobras to DeLoreans of the 1980s. EPA and the
California Air Resources Board have completed their guidance and
regulations, but companies can't start building vehicles and hiring
workers until NHTSA's Jan. 15th final rule has been approved and
published in the Federal Register.
NHTSA did its due diligence on this rulemaking, completing a robust
public comment process. The Biden Administration's Spring Regulatory
Agenda states that the rule will be finalized in January 2022.
Can you provide an update as to when you estimate the rule will be
finalized?
Answer. NHTSA is working to finalize this rulemaking by early this
year.
SUBCOMMITTEE RECESS
Senator Schatz. This hearing is now adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 4:02 p.m., Wednesday, June 16, the
subcommitteee was recessed, to reconvene at a time subject to
the call of the Chair.]