Sen. Inhofe Optimistic Congress Will Send POTUS a Highway Bill in a ‘Few Weeks’
A multiyear highway reauthorization bill will arrive on President Obama’s desk by next month, the chairman of the Senate transportation policy committee said Oct. 26 on the chamber’s floor.
“I’m confident that the Senate and House will work together to get this (transportation) bill to the president’s desk within the next few weeks,” said Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.), who oversees the Environment and Public Works panel with jurisdiction over highway policy.
In July, the Senate passed Inhofe’s six-year highway measure that includes a three-year funding structure. On Oct. 22, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee reported a six-year reauthorizing highway measure to the floor. The House bill’s sponsor, Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pa.), said he is hopeful floor managers will call up his bill in a couple of weeks. Shuster’s bill lacks a funding structure, but the T&I chairman has expressed confidence in the tax-writing Ways and Means panel’s ability to produce a transportation funding plan for his bill.
Inhofe said that whenever the full House advances its version, a conference meeting between House and Senate transportation authorizers to negotiate the terms of a final highway measure “wouldn’t take the normal time.”
“I anticipate we can do a conference in a matter of just a few hours,” Inhofe said.
