US budget to include $556 billion for transportation

highways, bridges, jobs

Marci Gilbert, Feb 14, 11.

President Obama’s fiscal year 2012 budget is expected to include a $556 billion plan for transportation, including $50 billion in up-front investment that “creates hundreds of thousands of jobs in the short-term,” according to The Hill, Capitol Hill’s finance and economy blog.

Details of the proposed budget plan include:

The establishment of a National Infrastructure Bank and begins investment into a a 25-year plan to improve and expand the nation’s high-speed rail system to provide access to 80 percent of Americans, according to a budget document obtained by The Hill.

The proposed 2012 budget consolidates 60 duplicate programs that frequently contain earmarks into five programs.

The Obama administration recently announced a six-year, $53 billion plan to expand high-speed rail. The 2012 budget contains $8 billion for the project. The plan builds on the $10.5 billion already devoted to high-speed rail, including $8 billion in economic stimulus funds and $2.5 billion from the 2010 budget.

House Transportation Committee Chairman John L. Mica (R-Fla.), criticized the plan and expressed support for building high-speed rail with private funding.

“Investment will only be made if bipartisan financing is found to ensure that it does not increase the deficit,” according to the budget document.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood recently said he was optimistic that Congress can complete a long-term surface transportation reauthorization before the August recess.

Source: The Hill
Photo Source: The Daily Beast