February 2009 Archives

Last week, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood promoted the idea of taxing drivers based on vehicle miles traveled as a way to add revenue for the Highway Trust Fund, which nearly ran dry last year. Concerned LaHood was getting ahead of the president, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs on Friday said a VMT tax "is not and will not be the policy of the Obama administration." LaHood also told reporters that tolling and increased use of public-partnerships are among the "five or six creative ideas" out there to augment gas tax revenues.

Last year, the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission called for eventually moving to a VMT tax to fund highway spending, and later this week the Infrastructure Financing Commission, also chartered by Congress, is expected to offer a similar recommendation. Is a VMT tax the best long-term approach to funding our national surface transportation system? Should it eventually replace the gas tax altogether? And what about other forms of user fees and creative financing mechanisms (including President Obama's National Infrastructure Reinvestment Bank) -- where should they fit into the mix?

-- Lisa Caruso, NationalJournal.com

31 responses: Lisa Caruso, Dennis Christiansen, Ken Orski, Mortimer L. Downey, Jon Martz, Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., Steve Van Beek, Gabriel Roth, James Whitty, Ken Orski, Bill Graves, Bob Poole, Rep. Tom Petri, R-Wisc., Paul Yarossi, Pete Ruane, Ken Mead, Lisa Caruso, Lisa Caruso, Gabriel Roth, Deron Lovaas, Lisa Caruso, Steve Van Beek, Richard Mudge, Robin Chase, Gabriel Roth, David A. Raymond, Greg Cohen, Mortimer L. Downey, Robert L. Crandall, Robert L. Darbelnet, James Whitty

House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif., is promising to pass global warming legislation through his panel by Memorial Day. As lawmakers begin to craft a climate change package, how should they design a cap-and-trade program to control greenhouse gases from the transportation sector?

What part of the fuel chain should be forced to obtain emission allowances? Should revenues from transportation sources be returned to the industry to help companies reduce their greenhouse gases? And if so, how?

-- Lisa Caruso and Margaret Kriz, NationalJournal.com

22 responses: Richard Mudge, Steve Van Beek, Robin Chase, Marion C. Blakey, Randell H. Iwasaki, James C. May, Robin Chase, Lisa Caruso, Eileen Claussen, Richard F. Timmons, Gabriel Roth, Deron Lovaas, Rich Sarles, James K. Coyne, Greg Principato, Bill Kovacs, Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., Bill Graves, Bob Poole, Linda Stuntz, Eileen Claussen, Jim Burnley

If we want a 21st-century transportation system, we must be prepared to pay for it. What innovative financing approaches can we put to work to create a globally competitive system that meets our present and future transportation needs?

-- Lisa Caruso, NationalJournal.com

28 responses: Randell H. Iwasaki, Gabriel Roth, Steve Van Beek, Phineas Baxandall, Emil H. Frankel, Ed Hamberger, D.J. Gribbin, Lisa Caruso, Gabriel Roth, D.J. Gribbin, Steve Sandherr, Jon Martz, Jim Burnley, Jacqueline Gillan, Terry O’Sullivan, Ken Orski, Gabriel Roth, Richard Mudge, Bob Poole, Gov. Tim Kaine, Steve Van Beek, Eric Britton, Bill Graves, Steve Heminger, Paul Yarossi, Eric Britton, Michael A. Replogle, D.J. Gribbin

In his August 2008 speech accepting the Democratic presidential nomination, Barack Obama pledged to "go through the federal budget, line by line, eliminating programs that no longer work." Which transportation programs or projects would you recommend that he cut?

-- Lisa Caruso, NationalJournal.com

24 responses: Gabriel Roth, Gabriel Roth, Emil H. Frankel, Gabriel Roth, Steve Van Beek, Mortimer L Downey, James C. May, Ned S. Holmes, Richard Mudge, Robin Chase, Gabriel Roth, Steve Sandherr, Robin Chase, Gabriel Roth, James C. May, Richard Mudge, James P. Hoffa, Jacqueline Gillan, Jon Martz, Gabriel Roth, James C. May, Bob Poole, Jack Schenendorf, Gabriel Roth