there, congress. hopefully, we can figure a way to help you do your job and get this money out and quicker to get people to work faster. >> frankly, i have little symp@@@@@ @ g) by which to do this. the state of minnesota uses it. it is the size of my thumb. there is no lengthy documentation.

it is all submitted electronically, instantaneously from the field. and every one of the 87 counties in the state of minnesota has a flash drive where they gather information. contractor's report daily into the dot. we supplied that technology. most dates have that. i have no sympathy for people who say -- most states have that. i have no sympathy for people to say, you have 100% funds? you have 100% responsibility to see what you're doing with it. you can do it instantaneously without additional paperwork. i want to hear what their complaints are. frankly, on the surface of it, i have little sympathy. our panel today consists of very

distinguished administrators, the middle administrations of the department of transportation. we will begin with mr. babbitt. you are newly anointed. i do not think that is the word. >> probably not anointed. [laughter] good morning. i do welcome the opportunity to testify today on the faa's implementation of the american recovery and reinvestment act. my colleagues and i share the sense of urgency and purpose for the task that the president and congress have said for us. although the faa's share for the transportation programs is relatively modest at $1.3

million, it will have lasting benefits for our nation's aviation structure. congress appropriated $1.1 billion for individual airport owners for airport development in such areas as airways, a tax hit -- taxiways, a terminal buildings, and high priority safety equipment at airports. the remaining $200 million was provided for the faa's own facilities and equipment program to upgrade power and navigation systems and to modernize the air traffic facilities. as this committee is aware, the act sets for some specific time lines for project completion. more than half of the $1.1 billion made available for airport grants was required to be awarded out within 120 days of the act. that was last wednesday, june 17.

i am very pleased to report that we not only meant that milestone, we have exceeded the milestone, and have awarded over $800 million, almost 70% of the met -- of the money allocated. it is out and head of deadline. two hundred 40 recovery act projects are underway or will be started within 40 days. -- two hundred 40 -- 240 recovery act projects are underway or will be started within 30 days. the faa's internal objective is to have 90% airport grant funding or $988 million awarded before the end of this fiscal year all told, we anticipate that $1.1 billion of the recovery act funding provided will create or sustain

approximately 12,000 jobs over the next two years. that is supplemented by the amount of jobs created. we distributed funding to the airports under our existing allocation process. we use in national priority system to help guide our decisions. the projects or programs need to be -- this pays off ultimately because the project's construction can begin very shortly after grant awards. this results in a planned ready-to-go projects. >> may i interrupt for a moment. will the social studies class please hold for just a moment. [laughter]

i am sorry. mr. mica has an existing social studies class said he would like to introduce them. they thought this was it. they thought this was recess. when someone starts talking, it is time to leave. >> sorry, mr. babbitt. i want the important transportation officials to know that you are being closely observed today. there are some high-paid lobbyists out there. we did attentively listened to the opening of your statement. the st. james middle school students are here from virginia. we thank you for bringing these

young people. we hope you enjoyed a few minutes of this important testimony. i hope you will get the opportunity to see how a congressional hearing is chaired by mr. oberstar and participation by other members of the committee. thank you for being with us. >> i want to go back to let you know that your congressman is the senior chair of the committee. the epistle of james is the epistle of works. [laughter] by your works, ye shall be saved. you're here. go back and read the epistle of state james. then relate it to what we're doing in this room, putting people to work. >> and if you do not study hard,

we will make you come back and sit through all the hearings. [laughter] >> thank you very much, class. [applause] >> now that you have regained her composure, thank you very much for that interruption. >> please proceed. >> i was looking forward to the increased scrutiny. i believe i was mentioning that, keeping with the intent of the law to create jobs throughout the state, the faa has monitored the allocation of the funding. as a result, the announced projects of this funding are represented in all 50 states, as well as puerto rico, an american simonamerican samoa, and other

territories. we are putting it to work to replace airport towers, to replace and improve power systems and implement navigation and landing system components. while these projects may not be as visible to the public as the airport grant program, they are an important part of a functioning of the faa's operations. many facilities are showing signs of age. they are in need of repair or rehabilitation. we have allocated the funding to put $50 million to power systems at 90 different sites, $50 million for modernization programs, and the largest part,

over $80 million, for replacement of three control towers and the modernization of three other tower sites. the act itself does not set a time when for the fnc fund, but we have set close to $50 million through june 17. we project an additional $30.2 million to be allocated at the end of the month. we plan to have the entire $200 million out by july of 2010. this, on its own, will support 300 new jobs. all of these projects are works that the agency had planned. this will accelerate the plan. it will provide needed improvement for our facilities sooner or ahead of schedule.

we look forward to reaping the benefits of such projects. finally, not only did the president and secretary of food direct us to get this out into the economy to be fast and smart, we also have to be accountable. currently, the faa is making all of our funding information publicly available by posting the information on the f a recovery act website that has -- on the f a a recovery act website. this information is available to the public and includes the recovery act funds received. we are stepping up our project and financial management oversight as well. the managers in the field are planning more on-site inspections for the recovery act project. it has been our experience that

the most effective oversight comes from a physical inspection of the work being done in the field. in addition, we will closely monitor payments to make sure that the inspection of work in the field. in addition, we'll closely monitor grant payments to ensure the funds are used appropriately and we're using administrative funding to hire an accounting firm to take a fresh look at factors we currently look to consider high-risk grantees. this will help us review payments to identify and correct in realtime any problem that is we see. so mr. chairman, the faa is proud of what we've accomplished to date. we're in the midst of millions of dollars of bids being received dale daily. the bid process is robust and the savings resulting from excellent bids are allowing us to stretch the dollars. we're able to undertake more projects than we had originally anticipated. so we thank you for your support

in this effort. we continue to keep you informed on our progress. of course, i'll be happy to answer any questions you might have at the end. >> thank you very much and congratulations on your designation. i'm clearing the senate and your appointment. i'm clearing the senate to the administrator of fail road railroad administration. glad to have you here. i know you have a long record of experience. hands-on experience in railroading and welcome to our hearing, the first 06 many you'll have before this committee or subcommittees. >> thank you mr. chairman and ranking member micah and members of the committee. certainly it's an honor to appear here before you today to discus the faa's progress in implementing the american

recovery and reinvestment act. in addition to putting people back to work, the recovery act also sets the stage for one of the most significant new initiatives of president obama, vice president biden and secretary la hood. that's the development of high-speed rail in america. fra's total appropriation in fiscal year 2008 was approximately $1.5 billion. the recovery act appropriated $9.3 billion over and above fras 1.7 billion appropriation for fiscal year 2009. despite the significant new responsibility, fra takes great pride in the fact that we've met or exceeded every one of the milestones set for us in the recovery act. the first significant recovery act milestone for fra was the obligation of $1.3 billion in capital funds to amtrak within

30 days of the enactment. that milestone was met weeks. amtrak is now turning approved project into orders for materials and supplies and working on rebuilding its railroad. i note that amtrak's president, joe borgman is a witness today and so i'll leave it to him to talk about the progress that amtrak is making with these dollars. let me now talk about the president's high speed intercity passenger rail initiative.

the obama administration believes that our transportation investment strategy must address several strategic goals in the coming years. ensuring safe and efficient transportation choices, building a foundation for economic competitiveness. promoting energy efficiency and environmental quality. and supporting interconnected livable communities. high-speed intercity passenger rail is well-positioned to address many of these strategic transportation goals. at fra, we're on track to achieve this vision in a timely manner using the same build-out approach that european countries have used. through our grant guidance which was issued on time, we seek to advance new express high-speed corridor services, with speed above 150 mile per hour and dedicated track, in corridors of 200 to 600 miles. we intend to develop emerging and regional high-speed corridor

services, at speeds of 9 to 110 miles an hour in corridors of 100 to 500 miles. and we intend to upgrade the reliability of service on conventional 79 to 90 mile per hour intercity rail services. the president's high-speed rail initiative will transform fra as an agency in many ways. historically, we've been a safety agency that also gave amtrak an annual grant. but now we have a new mission and new set 06 partners and increased responsibility. our financial assistance staff today is sized for that quieter era. staff's timely response to the aggressive schedule on the recovery act is a testament to the dedication of that small staff. but in order to meet our growing

responsibilities, i ask that your support for the president's fiscal year 2010 budget that begins to address the resource needs. i'll also note the successful over site of the expenditure of $8 billion will require that the amount of funds available for use by the secretary and project over site be more consistent with the 1% takedown that's historically authorized for grant oversight and not the quarter of 1% that was currently authorized in the recovery act. in closing, these are exciting times at fra. long-serving staff has told me that never before have they seen the level of administration for rail programs as they see today from the president, vice president and the secretary. i look forward to working with the members of congress and in particular, working with the members of this committee to help this nation reap the numerous benefits offered by

high-speed rail and i look forward to questions. >> thank you, mr. sabo. it's a very encouraging report. very enlightning, i must say. i'm sure this side of the table is new to you in your years after service in the other body, the staff, they have steeped you in the issues of transit and transportation programs and general, and you're more accustomed to being on the other side of the table and preparing questions to grill witnesses with. now it's your turn to be grilled. congratulations and welcome and glad to have you here. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i'm now realizing why they elevate this. i'm not accustomed to looking up this. >> i remember how it was when i

was elected in 1974. i remember chairman bob jones portrait in the other room let each of us new members say something for one minute. came to me and i said, well, mr. chairman it's a different feeling from when i had real power on this committee when i was the administrator. >> i appreciate the opportunity to discus the recovery act. but before i do, i want to take a moment on behalf of secretary hood, myself and the entire family to express our condolences and mourn the tragic loss 06 life that resulted from the washington metro crash earlier this week. we've been focused on that event. we've been in constant touch with member hersman with the ntsb and i'm happy to talk more about that q & a.

in the 15 week since this hallmark legislation was enacted we've been working very hard. today i'll share with the committee some of our accomplishments on how transit has helped local communities large and small. the recovery act made available for public transportation $8.4 billion and we view that as an extraordinary opportunity. unlike some of our partners who get one or two large formula or discretionary programs fta is standing up six separate programs, three formula programs, three discretionary programs and one that's brand new that was effectively authorized in the recovery act itself. these six programs together will serve no fewer than 695 grantees with the potential of over 1300 separate recovery act grants. these grantees, true of the entire transit industry, exhibit

drastically different levels of financial strength, technological sophistication and staffing capacity. they range from the largest rail systems that serve more passengers annually than amtrak to the smallest rural transit provider deploying a fleet of three or four mini advance. florida d.o.t. plans to use its recovery act funds to relocate and construct a new greyhound facility at the time miami center to provide important intercity connections and improvements to safety and the environment and economic environments. in aiken, south carolina, they plan to support our "united we ride" initiative to build a facility to house the travel management coordination center. this is the kind of project that's really focused on rural residents and the elderly in helping get medical appointments and elsewhere. really were given the daunting challenge of reaching all the dprantees we've been using every

tool we can to reach each and every grantee and put the recovery act funds to work. we're using our website, regional training of grantees, regional training of fta staff and sometimes we just get on the phone and walk our grantees through the process, stech by step by step, because that's what's necessary. in that regard, mr. chairman, i can't overstate how proud we are of the extremely hard work of the fta staff in putting this money to work, especially in our ten regions spread around the country. they've been working morning, noon and night to reach them and make sure the dollars are put to work. this collaboration is instrumental in keeping our implementation on track. of the recovery act funding provided, $1.74 billion or 21% has been obligated so far in another 4.1 billion or 50% are in process for obligation in the

near term. i'm informed as i was coming over here we're hopeful of obligating another couple hundred million dollars today. these figures equate to about 19,000 jobs currently obligated and another 45,000 jobs for the grants in process. in addition, 55 million dollars in recovery act funds have been transferred from the federal highway administration to fda for public transportation projects. these transfers reflect local decisions by states and municipalities to use recovery act highway funds for transit projects instead. fda estimates based on grants currently in process that approximately 4,000 new transit vehicles will be purchased or on order by this september. all vehicles will comply with the "buy america" act and will serve as an important shot in the arm for our manufacturing sector. in fact, minnesota is a good example. in that case the metro counsel

in minneapolis has requested funds to purchase 31 standard 40-foot buses, 30 hybrid buses, 26 articulated buses and 15, small 13 foot buses. links in orlando, florida, requested funds to buy 61 buses at a cost of $8.6 billion. that's part of what's missed. you talk to the sand and gravel folks calling people back to work. we have a situation where we have bus manufacturing lines that are hot and staying hot, knowing that these grants are coming. knowing the orders are coming. when we purchase a bus, we don't ask the grantee to give the money up front. they outlay the money to the grantee when the bus is delivered. that's not to say that people aren't working on that manufacturing line. the outlays come when the bus is delivered. i think that's an important point on the overall issue of outlays. the only thing i'd add, consistent with your guidance on

reporting requirements, we're adheres to each and every element of both letter and spirit of that law. we have a good system in place. we feel that the grantees are cooperating. like i said, they have various levels of sophistication. where though are confused we're helping them so i think we're on track. thank you very much. >> thank you. that's an excellent report. very uplifting and i will return to the subject of the process in the time reserves for questioning. acting deputy administrator of federal highway administration. >> chairman, thanks for the opportunity to discus the federal highway administration in implementing the recovery act. through the act, we are playing a key roll in creating jobs. the administration estimates the highway portion alone of the recovery act will create or sustain close to 300,000 jobs by 2012. it is providing a lifeline for

americans who work in construction and have been especially hard-hit by the recession. on march 3rd, president obama and vice president biden joined secretary la hood at d.o.t. to announce that 26.6 billion was available to states for highway investment. and within hours of the president's announcement, we began to approve projects. as of yesterday, fhwa division offices have authorized more than 5,000 projects in all 50 states, d.c. and the territories for a total of $15.7 billion which represents 59% of total funds available. i'm proud to say this wouldn't have happened without the strong commitment of fhwa employees. they've worked hard for many months, even before the act was passed to ensure that we'd be ready to implement legislation swiftly and efficiently. in passing the recovery act, congress emphasized the need to

rapidly infuse these funds requiring that 50% of the funds apportioned to a state must be obligated under a project agreement by june 29th. i'm pleased to say all states have met the deadline. we're hearing good news from states that projects are running ahead of schedule and under budget. by stretching recovery dollars states are able to complete additional projects and create more jobs. project approvals are only part of the story. we need to get projects under way to put people wack to work. as of june 19th, there are more than 1500 highway projects under way in 45 states, d.c. and on federal lands utilizing more than $5 billion in recovery act funds. we estimate that these project as loan will yield over 50,000 job years. fhwa is distributing $550 million for roads on federal and

tribal lands. this funding is creating jobs and improving access to national treasures. for instance, we have advanced projects like to reconstruction of the going to the sun road in montana's glacier national park and rehabilitation of roadways in yosemite national park in california. the recovery act is working for america. every new project we obligate is a signal for states to advertise contracts and for contractors to hire workers and ordered materials like steel, asphalt and concrete '. we're making investments in projects that will save lives. we're making investments in our highway system that will help it operate more efficiently and effectively while moving people and goods we need to keep our economy healthy. it is not only important to get the money out quickly, we must get it out in the right way. the agency continues to focus on reporting and management of the risks associated withh