send them. >> now we go to rep hall for five minutes. >> i am on the science and technology committee. i am not sure i know how to do this. [laughter] from a longtime friendship with senator durbin, i would have taken four minutes and given him four. that did not happen. we need to leave the acrimony to other bills and get together on this transportation bill. it is that important. i want to thank chairman mica for his leadership in this conference and commitment to ensuring a hard-working taxpayer dollars are used more efficiently. i think it is crucial transportation research programs be focused on enhancing safety, reducing congestion, and

improving quality. i introduced legislation to achieve these goals for surface transportation research programs. we must provide better coordination to avoid -- provide for more competition in their reviews to insure the strongest programs are carried out with greater flexibility to give the programs focused on the most pressing national needs. i will be supporting chairman micah's efforts to make sure the funding is used for intended purposes. we need to move forward with repairing and rebuilding the nation's infrastructure. it has been two years since the deepwater tragedy. the people of the gulf coast are still suffering the consequences. the steps were taken washington to determine the success and rate of recovery of the gulf coast. it is vital we make sure resources are made available and efficiently directed to those areas and those purposes where they're most needed.

as a supporter of and all the above energy strategy, we have an opportunity to create jobs and begin the process of alleviating the energy crisis by directing the approval of this and the keystone pipeline. it is my hope each of these provisions will be negotiated on its merits alone, not used as leverage for areas outside of our jurisdiction. i would like to express my appreciation for the chairman's leadership. i also look forward to working with my fellow committee member who also served on the transportation infrastructure committee. i would like to thank the speaker for the opportunity to work with the senate to craft a bill that will provide more certainty to states for planning purposes and job creation. thank you. i yield back my time. >> we will turn to senator better for three minutes and then to a representative johnson

for five minutes. >> thank you ahead of time for your successful leadership in this conference. i look forward to it. all of us are coming back to washington after a recess. i would venture to say every single one of us as we traveled our districts and states, had town hall meetings and other meetings, everyone of us heard two themes probably over and over. number one, the big challenge our country faces is jobs. no. two, please find ways to work together more effectively in washington. not to throw your principles of the window or ignore that, but to get beyond the pitcher and unnecessary partisanship and work more effectively together. in a lot of ways, this

conference committee is a simple test of how well we're listening collectively. if we're listening at all collectively, we can put something positive together. we need to do that. it is important. we need to do that to fulfill our duties to the american people. this bill is about jobs, private sector jobs, good paying jobs. it is about building infrastructure, which we know in many cases is crumbling. it is an essential core government ruled that everyone, including conservatives, agreed is a central role the federal government. we can do it without increasing the deficit. we can do it without increasing taxes. we can do it in the senate bill with positive reforms like no

earmarks. i challenge all of us to pass the basic test of whether we're listening to the american people. i want to outline quickly three priorities of line. one is the keystone pipeline. i have been a long and strong supporter of that. i introduced legislation a year over how -- i introduced legislation over a year ago. i strongly support it. i know it is a heavy lift politically. i think it could be a key force for a breakthrough to producing a better long-term bill. i strongly support the restore act language of the reasons mentioned. it is the right thing to do. it has broad bipartisan support. i strongly support the ramp act on the house side that

is very positive in terms of maritime commerce. we do not fund dredging enough. we allow the so-called trust fund to be stolen from. we need to stop that. thank you. >> rep. johnson, five minutes. >> thank you for calling this meeting and for your leadership in this effort to reauthorize the transportation programs. i look forward to working with both of you and the rest of my colleagues to put together a bill that will get more americans back to work and help to build up our struggling economy. despite the budgetary situation, it is not the time to delay investment in our transportation infrastructure. such a delay will only further

hurt the economy. the poor conditions of our highways and transit systems is already expected to cost american households and businesses more than $900 billion by 2020. the truth is we cannot afford to fail to get reauthorization over the finish line. the dallas-fort worth region that i represent is one of the fastest-growing metropolitan areas in the country. last year, the average dallas commuter spent 45 hours stuck in traffic, wasting 22 gallons of fuel and an estimated $924. congestion is the sixth word in the nation. the explosive growth of the region requires expansion in infrastructure and transit services. over 1/3 of the texas

transportation budget is dedicated to maintaining and replacing the existing roads and bridges. unfortunately, the transportation challenges being faced by the dallas region are not uncommon. we can and should do more to improve the transportation infrastructure. as a ranking member of the science committee in the house, i recognized the long-term viability of our transportation system is largely dependent upon the quality research and development of new transportation technologies and materials that will make our infrastructure safer, stronger, and more sustainable. one of my priorities is to ensure the department of transportation's research and development programs have the resources they need. i also want to make sure the research programs are effective, well-coordinated, and prioritized. we cannot deny our current transportation system places an

enormous burden on the environment. we need to be doing more to minimize the impact of surface transportation on the. environment and public. to do this, we need to be investing in cutting hadrosaurs -- in cutting edge research. we have a vibrant transportation sector and a healthy environment. a robust environmental research program as part of transportation will help us get there. in a time when our transportation system is challahs paging infrastructure, declining revenues and increased usage, access to reliable transportation data is more important than ever. i want to ensure federal, state, and local officials have the data they need to prioritize their policy and investment decisions. finally, i want to conclude my

commenting on the gulf coast restoration provisions under consideration in the conference. whether or not you live or represent the coastal communities of texas, alabama, louisiana, or florida, the gulf of mexico provides a wealth of products and services to our nation. it is important this bill provide the framework and guidance necessary to allow us to begin to understand and mitigate the impact of the deepwater horizon oil spill on this unique ecosystem in our economy. it is my hope we can work in a bipartisan manner on a bill that will provide the state department of transportation and transit authorities with the stability they need to plan long-term projects. there is no democrat or republican bridge. there are no democrat or republican roads. this bill is too important to

the american people and our economy for us not to come together and send the bill to the president's desk. thank you. i yield back. >> and now we are at the three- minute mark for everybody. the next one on my list is chuck schumer. he is not here. we will go to rep. young. >> damned dthing. i do not care about modern technology. i think this is a plot. [laughter] i have the same problem. maybe it is our gray hair. thank you for this conference.

mine is going to be very short. i really hope the senate will look at the reforms to expedite the process. the last time we wrote the bill, we put in a bid to expedite it. we're still faced with about 15- years to late -- delay from when a road is to be built until when it is finished. that is a tremendous waste of money. look at the reforms. senator dorgan, thank you for recognizing me. -- senator durbin, thank you for recognizing me. i noticed mr. inhofe did not recognize me. you are right. it does work. it is hard to go up the hill. i compliment the chairman on this. unless you have your fingers involved in making the soup, not many people will drink it. this is very important.

what we have done is try to pass a bill that no one has an interest in. transportation is a subject everyone should have an interest with, bipartisan, trying to improve our ability to transport and receive goods to be able to ship the mouth. we're neglecting our duty if we do not establish a good transportation bill. this is what i will be working on with the chairman and the senate side. i hope you listen to the interests we have. if this breaks down, we're all faced with a real problem. i yield back the balance of my time. >> senator? >> i am pleased to be part of the conference committee. thank you for your leadership. i look forward to working with you on this important endeavor. i believe this is a good bill.

i strongly support it. i very much supported the house approach and would have preferred a five-year bill. i also very much like the house approach of expanding energy production on public lands and using the revenues it would create to pay for a five-year plan. that did not happen at this point. hopefully it will in the future. since it did not, i think the two-year is a good bill. it is paid for. i support it and will work hard with everyone to see that we get it passed. two provisions in the bill i believe are very important. the first is the keystone xl pipeline. and also the provision that would provide for recycling coal ash. it is currently done. it would provide the certainty to continue to do that. both provisions are very important and integral to a highway bill. both enjoy strong bipartisan

support. 293 votes in the house, including 69 democrats. in the senate, 56 votes on keystone. we were missing two numbers to both support keystone. that is 58, a clear majority in the senate. it is not just that they are bipartisan. it is that we need to include them on the merits. any and all concerns raised regarding the keystone xl pipeline have been addressed. it has been almost four years in the permitting process. the project will create thousands of jobs. it will reduce our energy dependence on the middle east. it will help us reduce the price of gasoline at the pump, which has doubled over the last three years. every single american consumer suffers from high gas prices.

certainly our economy suffers from them as well. the u.s. chamber of commerce supports the provision and so does labor. on may 4, the afl-cio president said we were unanimous in saying we should build the pipeline. warren buffett yesterday on fox said it seems like it makes sense to me. for years is long enough. let's go ahead. this is an integral part. in my state alone, it takes 400 trucks a day off the road. 500 trucks a day beating up our roads and creating safety issues for our people. north dakota may pass alaska next year in oil production, but we cannot give the oil to the refineries if we do not have the pipelines to do it. recycling coal ash, the same thing. it reduces the cost of building roads. we provide strong environmental

safeguards with a state-led approach. we need to move the provisions for word to the best highway bill possible. >> thank you. >> that mic does not work. senator inhofe mentioned the cost of the extension in one way. i will mention another. we have seven states reporting they will forgo 60,000 jobs this construction season because of the temporary nature of the extension. they cannot plan beyond that for federal funds. if we can successfully conclude the conference quickly, we can look forward to restoring jobs in those seven states. i am sure the numbers for all of the states would be released

100,000 jobs for gone. it is steel, manufacturing, transit vehicles, things that go into them. these are sophisticated jobs. these are jobs we need in construction, manufacturing, and other areas. i have some sense of urgency about passing the legislation. the legislation as reported by the senate has funding for the secure rural schools. that is critical in my part of the world and across the united states for many states that have a significant federal land holdings. the harbor maintenance trust fund, i have advocated for years we spend the money collected for harbor maintenance on the harbor maintenance and improvement activities for vessels. we will need to modify the provision to make sure we do not just supplant general funding

for the corps of engineers. we need additional funding for the corps of engineers. the heavy $40 billion backlog of critical projects -- they have a $40 billion backlog of critical project. we have a lot of jobs on the table. we have a responsibility to act expeditiously, put aside differences, and return to the grand bipartisan tradition of congress. transportation has always been bipartisan and a high national priority starting with washington and lincoln, white eisenhower and ronald reagan. i hope we can deliver on that. >> some of you are sending me notes you have to leave. you would like your statement in the record. unless there is another idea, we will keep open the record until it 10:00 a.m. -- open until 10:00 a.m. to your statement. we're trying hard.

i am finding it very helpful. we will keep the record open until 10:00 a.m. for full statements. we will now move to senator bill nelson for three minutes. >> madam chairman, our people are hurting on the gulf. i think it is indicative in the senate bill sponsored by seven republicans and two democrats, and then when we passed the bill, what is a near-miracle in the senate, the vote was 76-22. you wonder with five gulf states how you get the interest of senators from 45 other states. it was the small but important part, the land and water conservation fund, which is very popular even among agricultural

interests. all of this cobbled together allowed us to have part of the bp fine money, this could be substantial money, anywhere from $5 billion all the way it to $20 billion, 20% of that money goes into the oil spill liability trust fund and/or the treasury. 80% is doled out according to a formula that all of those republicans and democrats came up with. it was then embraced by 76 senators. i commend it to you who are not familiar with the gulf of

mexico. you have already heard the words of senator shelby and senator vitter. that is all i want to say. thank you. >> the next on the list is representative duncan. put your mic on, sir. >> [inaudible] i want to commend you and chairman mica and all the members of the house and senate who have worked so hard to get us to this point. i look forward to working with everyone to iron out our differences and send the bill to the president's desk as soon as possible. this is the most important jobs bill this congress will deal with. these are jobs that will be done here, not in china or elsewhere. over the course of this conference we will be dealing with a large number of policy

issues that affect all of our surface transportation systems. when we emphasized in a jar 7 in the house is streamlining the project delivery process. -- one that we emphasized in h.r. 7 in the house is streamlining the project delivery process. according to the federal highway administration, the delivery process can take up to 15 years from planning through conception -- construction. this is unacceptable. another analysis conducted by the policy and review commission found a $500 million project that took 14 years to complete with see its costs double due to the impact of delays and inflation. we have had other hearings where they estimate the costs have sometimes tripled due to delays. i hope the conference committee will be able to agree on reforms

to streamline the process. i believe the conference report produced by this committee must have hard deadlines for federal agency to approve an extra day to expedite -- to approve and expedite projects. many countries are doing it in less time. that has to change. we must delegate more authority to states and allow state environmental laws to be used in place of federal laws. it makes sense to do so. we must simplify the approval process for projects within a right of way. this is something i think we can do easily. if we can agree to the common- sense changes, i am confident we can cut the time it takes to approve a project in half or better reducing the cost of projects and delivering benefits in a more timely fashion. as the saying goes, we can do much more with less. thank you.

i yield back the balance of my time. >> senator mendez is not here -- menendez is not here. senator costello is not here. senator whitfield? yes, three minutes. >> maybe i will go up here. >> i think it will reach. >> go over and get it and put it in front of him. >> madam chair, we appreciate the opportunity to be of this conference. it is my great honor to be here on behalf of the energy and commerce committee with our chairman, fred upton. i think all of us are aware of the american people do not have a high regard for congress as an

institution. we see approval ratings of 12% or 14%. we have an opportunity with this legislation to show the senate and house can come together and pass needed legislation to meet the many infrastructure needs of our great country. the senateware passed this legislation overwhelmingly with 76 votes. we are all aware of the house has shown overwhelmingly it does support keystone, the coal ash language. we would also like to see additional reforms on the highway bill. i think we can be successful in this conference. i think the american people would be significantly disappointed if this fell apart

because of something like keystone and coal ash, particularly when the environmental statement after studying this for over four years said that between the option of not building the pipeline or building the pipeline, the preference would be to build pipeline. there has been some discussion today about how long this route is. it is 1,700 miles. the only portion changed was about 60 miles within the state of nebraska. the governor of nebraska, the legislature of nebraska support this pipeline. on coal ash, it past democratic and republican -- in the past, democratic and republican administrations have never treated as a hazardous material. i think there would be great disappointment if this fell

apart because of two pieces of legislation of the majority of people in america support strongly. i yield back the balance of my time. >> thank you. eleanor norton? >> hello? we begin by sharing. that should be a good omen. i want to begin by thanking senator boxer and senator inhofe for getting a bill done in a difficult congress and for the example you have set for all of us around this table. traditionally, this is the most bipartisan, popular, and least

difficult bill to get through both houses. there is a good reason for this. this bill meets our obligation to perhaps the most important parts of our economy. not only on its own terms, but because this bill feeds so many other parts of the u.s. economy. senator boxer, i have a very long list of my most favorite and least favorite parts of your bill. i am not going to devote my few minutes to detailing my druthers. i am going to try to practice what i have been preaching, especially when i say that we simply must get a bill out of this conference committee. this is likely to be the only

jobs bill in the 112th congress that most americans would recognize as such. the bill already incorporates a ton of compromises. get ready for it. there are going to have to be more compromises for the sake of jobs, the economy, and for the sake of the people we represent. let's do the job that was assigned to this conference committee and get the job done. i yield back the balance of my time. thank you, senator boxer. going to go to senator menendez. >> we need to pass this bill quickly to generate and protect

3 million jobs. we need to pass this bill quickly to boost our economy in the short term and protect an essential asset for every business in america in the longer-term. we also need a bill that will protect dedicated transit funding. by way of example, this is true for hundreds of millions of people across the country. users the trans the hosts 250 million -- new jersey transit hosts 250 million transit passengers a year. we have worked hard with senators to develop a robust transit title that passed unanimously out of the banking committee. we will work to protect that in this conference. we know the senate transportation bill, by virtue of what happened in committee and on the floor, is supported by senate democrats, senate republicans, and house democrats. the only question is whether the

house republican colleagues will also work in a constructive way to pass the bill. after years of work, we are on the cusp of giving our states, businesses, and workers they need to make infrastructure investments. the uncertainty is critical in terms of unlocking the types of investments that will create greater results. if we do not pass the bill, we risk bankrupt in it and sing transportation spending come to a halt. given the high stakes, i would think no one in this room would be brilliant. it would be willing to put politics before the needs of our business community or efforts to revitalize our economy. it is time to start negotiating from the senate bill that had bipartisan support and has a total element of all of these titles in good faith. i hope that means keeping

divisive environmental issues of the bill. that is what we did in the senate process to get a widely bipartisan bill through the chamber. that is a model as to how we move forward. the question is, do we work in a bipartisan manner and passed the transportation bill as we did in the senate? the we try to shift blame for the failure? i hope we make wthe right decision for long-term growth. from thegoing to hear representative. >> thank you for this important meeting. i am very pleased to be on this conference committee. it is my hope we can work together to craft a long-term reauthorization which puts people back to work and allows our local governments to fund important projects and move forward.

since it expired in 2009, we've gone with short-term extensions. it has resulted in the stalled projects. every time i see transportation officials, they emphasize the importance of a long-term solution with certainty in funding. i believe we can produce a bill that will put people back to work reform programs, and lessen the bureaucratic tape. in west virginia, we have a tremendous need for repair and construction. it is a beautiful state but our terrain drives up the clock to build and maintain roads. last year, we have a listening session with the house chair and ranking member. the overall sentiment of those in the room that day was that washington slows the process. policies tie the hands of our state and early construction. time is money. simple changes like reviewing

projects concurrently rather than consecutively can save states money. granting states exemption on existing right of way can allow states to add new lanes of highway without having to go through environmental review processes for highway for which they have already performed one. encouraging states to enter the public-private partnerships can decrease the need to spend money on maintaining roads and bridges. classifying coal ash as a hazardous material will increase the cost of concrete and restraint the restoration of the ext infrastructure. this is a jobs bill. companies will hire in every single state. being from an energy state, i know we need to tap our own vast resources. i would echo the thoughts of many in this room. it is my hope we can work together and responsibly reform

the surface transportation program, maximize revenues, and maintain the highway trust fund for the future. we need to put people back to work and give them certainty the jobs will be there. this can be done with the reforms we have discussed. the longer we wait, the more expensive it will be. more of the roads and bridges will continue to become efficient. rest of myck the w time. >> thank you for successfully getting the transportation reauthorization bill finally to conference. i am honored to be part of the committee. i hope we can report out a bill that we can all be proud to support. we're going to have to work in a bipartisan manner and abandon some poison pills that have been discussed such as the keystone pipeline and some environmental streamlining provisions. there is bipartisan support for common-sense measures, but the

language attached to the house bill goes too far. i have concerns about the keystone pipeline in terms of the impact on global warming and the questionable benefit to american consumers. that is what the normal environmental review process is to evaluate. that is the administration objection to the provision and one that should make it a non- starter for everyone. the senate bill includes the significant program reestablished in current law. we recognized the traditional transportation funding programs were insufficient to finance many infrastructure projects of significance. the projects a significant program is designed to deal with the project. -- with the problem. i am concerned it is just authorizations' subject to general appropriations and might not be comprehensive enough to adequately address congestion

and goods movement. on transit, it appears we're all on the same page againalthough y some transit programs and policy issues to discuss, i am optimistic it can come quickly without controversy. i am sure all of a sub issues we would like to focus on in this bill, and hopefully we can resolve them all so we do not pass another extension in june. another extension denies certainty and not passing a major bill at this point denies what this economy and a country so desperately needs -- jobs. i look forward to working with everyone on the single most important jobs bill in this congress. >> thank you. i am pleased to be part of this

as a member of the ways and means committee. the best results is a highway bill that allows us to live within our means. we all hear that a lot from our constituents, balancing those two results. this committee must work to reach an agreement that accepts this new reality. we must have real reforms that reduce waste and redundancy that we all hear about from our local transportation officials and state transportation officials with respect to our highway programs. something you have been involved with the has been mentioned -- i would like to emphasize those as a final package that goes forward. it must also include an increased maritime.

a provision such as the one sponsored by our colleagues in the house a long with other provisions and the policies that will ensure u.s. maritime industry is competitive with the rest of the world is important as we move forward. these reforms combined with what has been mentioned a number of times, the keystone pipeline, a big jobs bill and a big infrastructure program are key ingredients to a highway bill that results in job creation and economic growth and our country. i look forward to working with you and the rest of our colleagues to produce a bill. >> thank you. let me just say i know it is not anyone in this room, but i am very happy to be on this conference. many members of the house goes

to the floor and talks about the senate. i say thank god for the united states senate to because they have set the example for what we need to do to move forward, not putting issues that are not germane to the transportation bill. transportation is the engine that put american people to work. you look at the chinese, they are putting $350 billion into transit. for the first time since ronald reagan, we are trying to cut the funding for transit. there are many areas i think we possibly can agree on a permitting process so we can cut down on the amount of time pursue projects. let me say i support amtrac 100%. they have a writer ship of 129 million passengers. what our country needs right now

is a surface transportation bill that strengthens our infrastructure. as someone said that was just talking the talking and not walking the walk, put the american people to work. thank you and i yield back the balance of my time. >> we are going to move to representative schuster. >> thank you and congratulations of being the chair of this conference. i look forward to working with you and all of my colleagues in a bipartisan manner. i agree with what the senator said that transportation infrastructure is a core function of government. i go back to adam smith as he argued that the three things the government should provide is security, justice, and maintaining public works to facilitate commerce.

i would like to remind my colleagues, senator durbin mention the last time we did a bill was bipartisan. the last two times it was bipartisan. but the economic situation was far different that we face today. the economy was strong the last two times. we did have congressional redirect funding. today we face unsustainable deficits and debt. we need to make sure we are moving forward with a bill that is paid for in a responsible way. to make sure we pay for this in the right way. i also think there are things we have added to this, the keystone pipeline for one. it will improve our ability to get energy and create jobs. i believe this bill can be a job creator and can improve the economy. a key to what we believe in the

house are the reforms. as many of you know, it takes on average 14-15 years to build a major highway construction project in this country. states lacked the flexibility to decide what the greatest transportation needs are in their states. putting band-aids on them that restricts how you can spend the money. it is -- i cannot tell people to put them on a bike paths when it could cause deaths when not building the bridges. we have a historic opportunity to reform. i just want to look at one project i saw a week ago. $680 million project. if we put our reforms -- we

would save $90 million. you multiplied that across a $260 billion highway bill or a $109 million highway bill and you have tremendous savings for the american people. we can do more with less. i look forward to doing this in a bipartisan way. >> thank you so much. >> i want to thank you and congressman mike for your leadership. the choices we make will determine whether our communities become more livable and whether citizens will have the mobility that will enable them to move ahead in their lives. the choices we make will affect millions of jobs and our nation. the bipartisan policy center found overwhelming evidence that the united states is failing in its highways, bridges, transit

systems, and consistently has fallen short in making infrastructure investments needed to provide for the long- term needs of the growing population and economy. we should recommit ourselves the value of investing in our own nation. the development of transportation infrastructure that supports our economic growth and success has been a shared priority. i wish we had been able to write and pass a comprehensive transportation authorization bill in a bipartisan manner that has been characterized by a previous house bills. as the house has failed to act, the senate passed legislation must be the basis for our discussion. there are several provisions i will recommend to strengthen, i note the senate bill reauthorize is the program and extends the rail programs.

i support these programs. >> without objection we will do that. >> let me make clear as a ranking member, i will strongly oppose any proposal that might be raised to use federal workers as a piggy bank to pay for a highway bill or any other legislation when we have refused to ask the richest in our nation to invest one additional penny. time is short. i encourage you all to draft a final bill. with that i will move -- i will yield back. >> we move on to representative bishop. >> is this working? madam chair, i feel honored to

be able to address a handful of my colleagues and some of the senate staffers today. the idea somebody from the resource committee is on this highway bill means somebody screwed up somewhere. on the highway portion there are a lot of good reforms in the senate version and even more in the house version. the keystone pipeline is an important issue. there are some extraneous issues that bring questions to me as a member of my committee and somebody who lives in the west. it does not solve the problem, especially when the house committee has passed a long-term version that gives certainty to local communities on when they will get their pal money and a long-term solution to the funding. its current authorization is longer than the authorization of this base bill. the idea of extending it for

another seven years is strange, especially when it adds $1.5 billion that needs to be offset. that is $700 billion a year in mandatory spending which is double what this program has been appropriated for each of the past five years. when we have questions of the division between state and federal split of this money, whether the grant money is useful or part of the slush fund, whether the purposes are used for some good programs but others have been abusive, this provision has had no hearing on the house or senate side. if this continues in here this bill will be less likely to make financially balanced and create additional and unneeded opposition to this bill. once again i say from somebody from the west looking at these provisions, i find them the least changed -- at the least

strange. i look forward to working with members in here to find a solution for long-term finding -- funding for the highway program. >> thank you very much. rip boswell. >> -- rip boswell. >> will travel and we work together. i thought we could have a transportation bill. we could not have one. i still think we can. and the eternal optimist. we plan to see that it will grow. it is -- we have to get this going. this country has so much at stake. i have been an alternative for alternative fuels hear my entire career here. i saw what happens to communities.

people just like us when they do that have fuel for their car and transportation and delivery truck and so on. we do not need to go there. it seems like everything has been said that we have not all said its. i wonder, could you bring to a letter session an expert to that could tell us what keystone really means? i think we all understand there is a job to construct, but there seems to be a lot of the first opinion about what happens to the finished product and what it means to the gas and the pop. i would like to know from an expert if there is such a possibility. i want us to get moving. i do not want something to happen in your district and mine. i can remember the pain we all felt when the bridge in

minnesota went down. we should not let that happen again. our country was built on compromise. a lot of you studied it. i have to. -- i have, too. it makes us what we are. the house needs to work with the senate and the senate needs to work with the house. we have a platform. you have shown us your ability to bring people together. i am counting on you to do it here. i do not want you to feel pressure or anything. you have demonstrated that. i want to be supportive and see us get a bill out and get contractors busy and let's not have another bridge falls somewhere because we could not do our work. i will yield back and thank you for your efforts. >> thank you. i see senator schumer is back. this is your moment.

>> chairman boxer, it is a pleasure to be here. i want to thank you for your amazing leadership on this bill. you deserve real accommodation for coming together on an outstanding bill. is just what america wants. we want jobs, infrastructure, and we wanted to be done in a bipartisan way. you have achieved that not one of the most significant bills here. i hope the example you have set will be the theme of this conference.

-- you have achieved that on one of the most significant bills here. i hope we can agree investing on infrastructure is a fundamental part of government. i remind my republican colleagues that the first big infrastructure project was started by a whig. henry clay decided internal improvements or something the federal government should do. those were high ways to open up the far west -- ky, ohio, western pennsylvania benefited from those improvements. the federal government has been involved in this for a long time. i know there are a few who say the federal government should not be involved in transit, but they are a distinct minority. americans of all three parties agree.

all across the country there are roads, bridges, transit systems in need of serious repair. there is the construction industry, i am sure it has been talked about that is so out of work. this is the best way to put them back. i will skip all that part of my speech because i know people have waited a long time. i want to make a few quick points. the senate bill gives states like new york to the tools and resources we need to provide a large legacy for public transportation systems. i know a lot of my colleagues do not like mass transit. for us mass-transit is to you what highways are. we get three and half million people on and off manhattan island. without mass transit it could

not exist. there are some places that need wide open spaces and some cities that spread out. there are some cities that work because they are dense. new york is one and we cannot do it without mass transit. it is a 5000 sq. foot area that covers 20 million people. we cannot ignore the backlog. i will ask the rest of my statement be put in the record. there are a number of us on this committee who will fight hard for mass transit. it is is important to us as it is too many of you. >> now, we will hear from representative butler. >> thank you. it is exciting to be part of this committee. a strong transportation system is important -- it is as

important to my corner of washington state as any other area of the country. it is a link from vancouver to olympia. it means jobs for my region and all of our regions. i look forward to working with members of both parties in order to keep our transportation system on did. the reason i am here is to help find solutions. people want to see the best possible agreement from this committee and i will do my best to make that happen. we have solid experience and the new ideas. both are needed to produce the solutions that we need. the house version included innovative ideas that would help us complete projects more quickly and efficiently. it will keep our commitment to safe and reliable infrastructure. i understand there are challenges and differences we have to work out.

the difference is a dwindling highway trust fund that must be strengthened. i have heard a lot about the merits of the senate bill. one of the things neither bill does is provide a long-term solution to how we will pay for aging infrastructure. we need to come up with solutions. it is very important. a lot of us believe like the senator from new york's said, it is something the federal government needs to be engaged in. i think the longer term bill that is paid for responsibly will best serve all of our constituents. i am ready to roll up my sleeves and get to work. thank you for the opportunity. >> thank you very much. >> thank you, madam chair. i t why for convening this

conference committee to reauthorize our transportation service program. i look forward to working with you and our colleagues in a bipartisan matter to put americans back to work. this has been afforded a real opportunity to complete the largest jobs package in the 112th conference. -- congress. we must find common ground to complete this bill lest we waste another season. none of us have ever seen a perfect piece of legislation. this is very good legislation. the bill passed overwhelmingly in the senate with a bipartisan majority and it is fully paid for. it will save 1.8 million jobs and create up to an additional 1 million jobs. we have to get this done as quickly as possible. while there are some sections of the senate bill i would like to see massaged i strongly concur

with the senate bill. i am troubled by portions of the house bill that would undermine our nation's environmental laws, 11 a local input on infrastructure projects and tie the hands of federal regulators. i am supportive of a provision in the house bill to affirm congress pose a role to allocate funding from the trust fund for the needs. i hope this can be expanded to ensure all ports benefit from better utilization of the harbor bayonets' trust fund. at the end of this process, it is my hope we can advance to our chambers and approve a bill that will improve the nation's infrastructure. i yield back the balance of my time. >> thank you. >> as a freshman member of congress, i have quickly learned

about our transportation needs. i know that everybody in this room can agree we desperately need to create certainty to producing a bill that includes significant reforms, responsible funding, and covering the longest period of time we can produce. in this fiscal climate we need to do more with less. we need to streamline the environmental review process and consolidate duplicative programs and spend our transportation dollars on projects. let's eliminate mandates. indiana has a model transportation program thanks to the innovative ideas of mitch daniels, indiana has invested $6.5 billion recently in transportation projects. part of this includes the construction of interstate 69 through my district connecting the third largest city to our state's capitol. this project had been planned

since 1965. it is now being built. the government does not have enough money to meet all of our infrastructure needs. we need to involve the private sector in this process. every state should have the opportunity to replicate in the and the's successes without being punished for it financially. we need to make sure it is allocated to each state or done fairly. indiana and a dozen additional states have been donor states for over three decades. we would give back about 92 cents on the dollar. as late as the 1980's only 78 cents on the dollar. we need to provide adequate funding to each state and provide states with dollars they contribute to the trust fund. the senate bill does not accomplish these goals and puts indiana and other states at risk for significant cuts. i would like to thank the

chairman for your leadership on these issues. it is good for all states equally and gets us on a pathway to creating jobs and rebuilding the nation's infrastructure. >> thank you. if he comes, we will definitely go back to him. we will hear from rip hand up. -- representative hanna. >> i think everybody has done their best to produce the best possible bill. i am privileged to be a witness to that. as a contractor for 30 years, i have had hundreds of employees.

i have completed thousands of projects large and small. i am also a member of the operating engineers for over 25 years. what i know is that many millions of people in this country could be put back to work immediately if we were to do our job here today. what i know is that they sit and wonder why they are not back to work knowing that investments in infrastructure are just that, as was the national railroad, the national highway system and all of that. these are not just expenses, they are investments in the future that pay for themselves. i look forward to working on this committee. i look forward to working with all of you, to the best of our ability. i have watched these extensions go on both as a private citizen waiting for work knowing that prices have never been lower in this country. people are bidding lower and lower because the process is

becoming more and more competitive. this two year bill will soon enough be a one-year bill. i am tired of this, i think the country is tired of it. i look forward to working with you all. >> i would like to call now on representative sutherland. >> i would like to commend you and chairman micah for your leadership. it is a great privilege to serve in my first conference. my comments will be brief because many of them will not be heard with so many people having left. >> we are listening.

the american people are listening. >> i think they are. i think if the american people could speaker today they would say they want a transportation bill that adds value. they understand value means quicker and a more efficient. i am a small-business owner. -- a business my grandfather started 60 years ago. i understand we have to do things differently than he did to create value. when i 35 collapsed in minnesota, the bridge was rebuilt in 437 days. i think the american people would recognize that is value. today the average project this summer around 14 years. they would say there is very little value there. whatever we work with and produce, i think it must first

have a value. secondly, the american people have the expectation the be paid for. we in this financial state that we find ourselves in, with calamity occurring across the ocean because of the sense of wasteful spending, i think they believe that would add additional value. i think with a transportation bill that has value in it that is paid for where we no longer live our lives and spend on credit, i think that would produce for the american people what they want to most and that is certainty. i look forward to working -- i yield back. >> thank you for your work and your leadership.

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