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enate negotiators proposed a compromise $290 billion plan for a long-term highway bill with the House, hoping to break an impasse that has stalled action on the bill for nearly two years, the Associated Press reported.
The Senate in May approved a $295 billion package but the White House has threatened to veto any bill that exceeds $284 billion, the level passed by the House in March. (Click here for previous coverage.)
There was no immediate comment from the House, AP said.
The compromise said stipulated that 92% of the money that states pay through the federal gasoline tax into the federal highway trust fund be made part of the general formula that determines how much each state gets back from the federal government, AP reported.
The House bill, sets aside 88% for the general funding pot, AP said.
The Senate also proposed a 50-50 split between the House and Senate on specific projects, AP said. The House version details 4,000 projects worth nearly $12 billion, but the Senate-passed bill does not contain such earmarks.
House and Senate negotiators have until June 30 to work out a compromise before the latest extension on the old highway bill expires. The one-month extension, signed in May, is the seventh since the 1998-2003 highway bill expired in September 2003.
