On Tuesday the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rejected LightSquared’s plans for a 4G broadband network. The decision was largely influenced by final recommendation from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), which is a joint panel consisting of nine federal agencies. The NTIA sent a letter to the FCC saying the group “cannot support” further deployment of LightSquared’s technology since there is no practical way to mitigate potential interference of the company’s transmissions with GPS signals at this time.
President Obama’s FY 2013 budget request for the Department of Transportation rehashes last year’s request. The president renewed his request for $50 billion in the current fiscal year to provide a targeted economic boost and to jump start job creation. In addition, the administration used the budget request to again propose ideas for a long-term legislation to reauthorize the surface transportation programs. The timing of the proposal took away much of its relevance because both the House and Senate are already considering their own versions of transportation reauthorization.
March 11-17, 2012 National Convention Honolulu, Hawaii March 13, 2012 H&T Issues Forum 9:15-10:30 a.m. March 16, 2012 H&T Division Meeting 10:30 – NoonMarch 20, 2012 Road Rally Washington, D.C.April 16-18, 2012 Federal Contractors Meeting Washington, D.C.Transportation Track April 17Hill Visits April 18April 22-28, 2012 Work Zone Awareness WeekApril 23, 2012 Work Zone National Event St. Louis, MissouriMay 30-31, 2012 TCC Fly-In Washington, D.C.鶹ƵIssues Briefing Lunch—Tuesday, May 30 11:00 -1:30 p.m.Legislative briefing --- Tuesday, May 30 2:30 – 5:00 p.m.For more information, please contact Brian Deery at (703) 837-5319 or deeryb@agc.org.
A half day Civil, Industrial, and Utilities VDC (Virtual Design and Construction) Forum will be held on April 24th in conjunction with the April 25-26 BIMForum in San Antonio, Texas. The BIMForum is looking for presentations on successful implementations of VDC on Highway, Road, Bridge, Utility, Treatment Plants, and Power Distribution projects. These projects have the potential to realize substantial financial and schedule savings. Presentations should focus on the use of VDC to enhance work flow, minimize schedules, increase safety, provide a better end product, or increase field productivity. Submissions are due on Friday, February 24th, 2012.
Today the Senate began consideration of MAP-21, a two year surface transportation reauthorization bill. The first order of business was to approve a “motion to proceed” which passed by a vote of 85-11, demonstrating strong bipartisan support. The bill is now open for debate and amendment. It is anticipated that the bill will be on the floor for several days.
By a vote of 17-7 and one present vote, the Senate Finance Committee today approved a list of revenue enhancers to provide the $5.5 billion necessary to fund MAP-21, the Senate’s two year transportation reauthorization legislation. The vote was largely bipartisan with four Republicans joining the Committee Democrats in supporting the measure.
Following an historic 18 hour markup session that ended at 2:45 am eastern time, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved, by a vote of 29-24, H.R. 7, the American Infrastructure and Infrastructure Act of 2012. The committee considered over 100 amendments and adopted 33. The House Ways and Means Committee today passed the revenue title to the bill and the Natural Resources Committee approved its portion of the legislation on Wednesday. The three titles will now be bundled together into one bill and is likely to be addressed by the full house as early as the week of February 13.
Today, the House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee began consideration of H.R. 7, the American Infrastructure and Infrastructure Act of 2012. Over 100 amendments will be considered. The committee began action at 9:00 a.m. and is still meeting on the legislation. The committee markup was notable for the partisan bickering between the majority and minority over the drafting of the bill. No Democrats have cosponsored the bill.
AGC’s chief executive officer, Stephen E. Sandherr, issued the following statement today in reaction to newly-proposed surface transportation legislation released by House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John Mica:
"Chairman Mica has done tremendous work pulling together legislation that provides the kind of comprehensive reforms needed to restore Americans’ faith in the federal highway and transit program. In particular, the legislation will significantly accelerate transportation improvements across the country by cutting the needless red tape and regulatory redundancies that have forced projects to languish for years awaiting federal approval to move forward. In addition, the legislation’s commitment to maintaining current funding levels, despite the current budgetary environment, reflects a fundamental appreciation for the broader economic benefits of investing in transportation infrastructure.
House and Senate negotiators on the long-awaited final Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill have reached an agreement. Details of the conference agreement are not yet available. Senate Aviation subcommittee chairman John D. Rockefeller (D-WVa) issued a statement which says the conference agreement is a bill lasting four fiscal years (the remainder of FY 2012 plus FYs 2013, 2014 and 2015) with, "Annual funding for FAA's programs are consistent with the FY 2012 appropriated levels for the next four years." The Airport Improvement Program has contract authority of $3.35 billion per year.