CAGTC Members,
Yesterday, Senate Environment and Public Works Chairman John Barrasso (R-WY) and Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-DE) called on EPW members to submit priorities, policy proposals and recommendations for a committee-produced comprehensive infrastructure bill. The request encourages Senators to submit their comments by Friday, July 21. If your Senator serves on the EPW Committee, we encourage you to contact their office and ask that dedicated funding for freight infrastructure be included in their response to the EPW Committee. Below, please find a template email that you can send to your Senator. You can find a contact list for all Members of the EPW Committee here. We encourage you to send this message as soon as possible. Please let me know when you’ve sent a note to your office, as well as any feedback that you receive – thank you!
Dear XX,
I am writing regarding the Senate EPW Committee leadership request for Committee members to submit priorities, policy proposals and recommendations for a committee-drafted comprehensive infrastructure bill. As Senator XX considers what to include in his/her recommendations, I hope that freight infrastructure investment will be prioritized. [ NAME OF YOUR ORGANIZATION] would like to see a minimum of $2 billion dedicated annually to a multimodal freight infrastructure competitive grant program included in any infrastructure bill. While the Nationally Strategic Freight and Highway Projects Program (NSFHPP/FASTLANE/INFRA) is a good start, it was already oversubscribed in its first round, with applicants requesting 13 times more funding than what was available according to USDOT. Unique from other types of infrastructure spending, investment in the nation’s multimodal freight network is an economic multiplier. Not only are jobs created immediately in the construction phase, but an efficient freight network attracts and retains businesses, supports the cost-effective movement of goods and services, and benefits the economy for years to come.
In order to capitalize on funding, investment must be strategic. The Coalition for America’s Gateways and Trade Corridors (CAGTC), of which [NAME OF YOUR ORGANIZATION] is a member, advocates for a multimodal, freight-specific competitive grant program that uses a set of merit-based criteria for funding allocation. Criteria should be developed such that successful projects accomplish some or all of the following: 1) improved mobility for all transportation users; 2) reduced delivery time and logistics costs; 3) increased freight system capacity; and 4) mitigated community and public health impacts resulting from freight movement, reduced emissions, and improved transportation safety.
The competitive grant program should also make funds fully available to multimodal infrastructure needs so project developers can make improvements on the most important freight projects regardless of mode, particularly since funding for an infrastructure bill presumably will not be coming from any highway or gas tax related source. If Congress chooses to move funding through existing FAST Act programs, we suggest the following changes:
- Eliminate the 10% cap in the FAST Act on the amount of the funding from the National Highway Freight Program (23 USC 167) that a State can use for “freight intermodal or freight rail projects, including projects (i) within the boundaries of public or private freight rail or water facilities (including ports); and (ii) that provide surface transportation infrastructure necessary to facilitate direct intermodal interchange, transfer, and access into or out of the facility”
- Eliminate the $500 million cap in the FAST Act on the amount of the funding from the Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects (23 USC 117, FASTLANE/ INFRA) that can be awarded for ‘‘a freight project that is— ‘‘(I) a freight intermodal or freight rail project; or (II) within the boundaries of a public or private freight rail, water (including ports), or intermodal facility and that is a surface transportation infrastructure project necessary to facilitate direct intermodal interchange, transfer, or access into or out of the facility.”
Thank you for your time and please contact me with any questions.
Sincerely,
NAME
ORGANIZATION
Best,
Katie Cross
Manager, Member Communications & Policy
Coalition for America’s Gateways and Trade Corridors
1444 Eye St N.W.
Suite 1100
Washington, DC 20005
(202) 828-9100
tradecorridors.org