September 19, 2011 |
F E D E R A L |
Congress Continues Appropriations Work as End of Fiscal Year Nears
SUSTAINABILITY, PLANNING, AND CONSERVATION FUNDING AT RISK
With a deadline of September 30 looming, Congress returned from August recess and continued its work on FY 2012 appropriations bills. Despite the focus on the regular appropriations process, Committee Chairman Harold Rogers (R-Ky.) released a continuing resolution that would fund the government from the end of the fiscal year on September 30 through November 18. The continuing resolution would fund the government at 1.5 percent below FY 2011 levels, the level that was established for FY12 in the debt ceiling deal. Congress is expected to vote on the resolution this week. |
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In this issue:
F E D E R A L
Congress Continues Appropriations Work as End of Fiscal Year Nears
F E D E R A L
Congress Approves 6-Month Transportation Extension
F E D E R A L
President Proposes New Infrastructure, Community Revitalization Funding
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The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development targeted the Partnership for Sustainability in its FY12 spending bill that was approved by the subcommittee. The two main sustainability grant programs — TIGER at DOT and the Sustainable Communities Initiative at HUD — were eliminated in the House bill.
The Senate is expected to release its draft and begin votes on its Transportation, Housing and Urban Development bill very soon.
HUD and DOT
Despite the elimination of the Sustainable Communities Initiative, the budget wasn't all bad news for HUD. The Community Development Block Grant program (CDBG) received $3.5 billion in the House bill, a slight increase of $165 million from FY 2011. However, the budget gains by the program were countered by new restrictions on how funding can be used. The program had been cut by 16 percent in the FY11 budget deal.
The House bill slices in half that amount of local CDBG funds available for local governments to plan and administer grants. The bill cuts the current 20 percent cap to 10 percent. The change threatens significant funding cuts for local governments. The House measure also prohibits CDBG funding from supporting the programs of the Office of Sustainable Housing and Communities, including grants, personnel, capacity building, and interagency coordination on livable communities, essentially dismantling the Partnership for Sustainable Communities. CDBG and Partnership for Sustainable Communities supporters are pressing the Senate to remove the restrictions. You can take action on this issue through the APA Online Legislative Action Center at www.planning.org/_offsite/capwiz.htm.
Other HUD programs did not fare as well as CDBG. HOPE VI and Choice Neighborhoods did not receive any funding, and the HOME program was funded at $1.2 billion, a 25 percent cut.
Sustainability and planning was also targeted at DOT. The House bill completely eliminates funding for the popular TIGER program, which provides competitive, multimodal grant funding for communities as part of the Partnership for Sustainable Communities. In keeping with House Republicans' stated goal of working within the means of expected Highway Trust Fund revenue, the bill holds FY12 funding for highways to $27.7 billion and transit to about $7 billion. Compared with enacted FY11 levels, this is an $11.7 billion cut for highways. Almost $3 billion in transit funding is cut, much of it in formula funding and bus grants programs. The draft bill also eliminates funding the High Speed Rail program, which has significant support from the administration.
Agriculture
The Senate Appropriations Committee passed its FY 2012 spending bill for the nation's Agriculture programs with cuts of $200 million from FY11 levels. Still, the Senate version is $3 billion more overall than the measure passed by the House for FY12. The Senate bill would provide nearly $830 million for conservation programs, $40 million less than FY11, but $64 million more than House-passed levels for the programs.
In its report on the measure, the committee did not recommend an appropriation for the Healthy Food Financing Initiative, but stated that loans and grants that are made available under the Rural Development title may be used for the effort.
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F E D E R A L | Congress Approves 6-Month Transportation Extension
BIKE/PED FUNDING SAFE, AT LEAST UNTIL REAUTHORIZATION
The Senate approved a clean, six-month extension of surface transportation programs and sent it to the president for his signature late last week. The House approved the legislation earlier in the week.
The extension of SAFETEA-LU was combined with a four-month extension of Federal Aviation Administration programs to allow Congress more time to work out the reauthorization details of both major transportation laws. The measure extends the federal gas tax and authorizes funding for surface transportation programs at FY11 levels through March 31, 2012.
Half of this year's $41.7 billion will be authorized for the six-month bill, but if severe budget cuts in the FY12 appropriations bill are approved, transportation funding could still be drastically reduced in the second half of the fiscal year.
The extension measure was briefly held up when Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) sought to add language to remove all Transportation Enhancements funding, despite an agreement by leadership to pass a clean extension. This program is the primary source of funding for bicycle and pedestrian projects that enable safe access to the transportation system for millions of users. Although it represents less than 2 percent of all federal transportation funding, these programs have been a continual target of many lawmakers seeking to reduce federal spending. Coburn agreed to remove his hold on the legislation after receiving assurances that he will be allowed to offer the language to the long-term reauthorization measure.
This is the eighth extension of SAFETEA-LU since it first expired in September 2009. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) has said that it is also the last one that he will support. Lawmakers now have six months to negotiate the details of a reauthorization bill.
Senate Environment and Public Works Chairman Barbara Boxer (D-Cal.) said that her committee's two-year proposal is almost ready for its mark-up, and that a deal on offsetting the additional $12 billion in spending not supported by the Highway Trust Fund is nearing completion. The costs of the proposal will have to be analyzed before Ranking Member James Inhofe (R-Okla.) agrees to move forward.
The House proposal sticks with the traditional six-year timeline, but significantly reduces spending to stay within the confines of lagging Highway Trust Fund revenue. Mica has said that 70 percent of his bill has been drafted and he hopes to bring it up for a vote soon.
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F E D E R A L | President Proposes New Infrastructure, Community Revitalization Funding
AMERICAN JOBS ACT CONTAINS BILLIONS FOR INFRASTRUCTURE BANK
In a speech to Congress on September 8, President Obama announced his American Jobs Act, a $447 billion plan that includes new funding for infrastructure and community revitalization efforts.
Though the President did not use the word "infrastructure" in his speech, he outlined a plan for $50 billion in spending for "immediate investments in highways, inner-city rail and transit." The plan also includes $10 billion for an Infrastructure Bank, a funding mechanism to support projects of national significance that has been proposed both by the administration and Congress in the past.
The President also proposed a new Project Rebuild program, which would be an expanded version of the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) and would provide $15 billion in funding for the rehabilitation of vacant and foreclosed housing and businesses. Unlike the NSP program, Project Rebuild will also focus on commercial properties in an effort to have a greater impact on affected neighborhoods.
Republican response to the plan has not been enthusiastic, though leadership did not reject the President's proposal outright.
"The record of the economic proposals enacted during the last Congress necessitates careful examination of the President's latest plan as well as consideration of alternative measures that may more effectively support private-sector job creation," Speaker John Boehner said.
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