We should know in the next few weeks what the first draft of the bill that will decide transportation funding and policy priorities for the next five years looks like.
As we’ve written before, the lead author of the bill, Representative Sam Graves (R-MO), has said it will be a “traditional” bill that doesn’t fund biking or walking infrastructure. On the other hand, he has also said he wants this to be a bipartisan bill and it’s unlikely Representative Rick Larsen (D-WA), the ranking Democrat on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, would back a reauthorization bill that zeros out funding for bicycling and walking infrastructure.
But debates over the merits of bicycling and walking funding will continue. Last week, Representative Scott Perry (R-PA) introduced a bill that would eliminate Transportation Alternatives – the largest bucket of federal funding for things like bike lanes, sidewalks and trails. That bill is unlikely to go anywhere (Perry doesn’t have a very successful track record of getting legislation passed into law), but it is indicative of the type of thinking among certain members of the House Transportation Committee.
We need to push back on that kind of thinking. We oppose any reduction in Transportation Alternatives funds – we want to strengthen the program – and while we believe a complete zeroing out is unlikely, we believe strong advocacy may be required to ensure there is no reduction in the next five years of funding.
When the first draft of the reauthorization bill is released, we’ll be looking for our priorities and asking you to lend your voice in support of better biking. Those include:
- Robust funding for Transportation Alternatives
- Legislative language of the Sarah Debbink Langenkamp Active Transportation Act and the Magnus White and Safe Streets for Everyone Act
- Reauthorization and fund for the Safe Streets and Roads for All grant program
We’ll also be scouring the bill for any changes to language around vulnerable road users, local match requirements for federal grants, policy changes, and other bills like the BIKE Act.