ATU Action Weekly Update - 1/14/08

New High for Federal Transit Funding

Shortly before adjourning in December, Congress passed the overdue Transportation Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year (FY) 2008, which includes funding for public transportation programs which began on October 1, 2007.

The bill includes $9.492 billion for public transportation - a $517 million increase over last year's level.  The funding provided this year is an all time high for transit.  While falling $240 million short of the levels authorized in the 2005 transit law (SAFETEA-LU), it still represents a 5.8 percent increase from FY 2007.

Most transit programs grew by more than 8 percent.  The exceptions were the Bus and Bus Facilities and the New Starts/Small Starts programs (funding for rail and trolley projects) which were targeted for cuts by the Bush Administration. 

Consideration of the FY 2009 transit appropriations bill will begin later this spring.  This is the last fiscal year before SAFETEA-LU expires.  The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Senate Banking Committee are expected to conduct hearings throughout the year to gather new ideas on public transportation policies and financing. 

 

Motorcoach Safety Bill Introduced in House

U.S. Representative Bill Shuster (R-PA), a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, has introduced H.R. 4690, the Bluffton University Safety Act, which would require the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to study improvement to motorcoach safety requirements.  The ATU is supportive of the legislation.

After conducting a study, NHTSA would prescribe federal standards for motorcoach occupant protection, taking into account rollovers, frontal impact, side impact and rear impact collisions.  NHTSA would provide standards for window glazing, roof strength, fire prevention and emergency egress.

The bill was introduced in response to a March 2007 bus accident, in which a bus transporting the Bluffton University baseball team went off an overpass, killing seven people. 

Unlike other bills which would immediately establish new requirements for buses, the Shuster bill is based on sound-science and timelines that the industry can actually achieve.   

 

Democratic Presidential Primary Round-Up

The race for the Democratic nomination for U.S. President is heating up as we approach Feb. 5th - when Democrats in 22 states will go to the polls (or to their caucus site) to vote for their choice. 

With two states having already voted (Iowa and New Hampshire), the race has essentially boiled down to a two-person race between ATU-endorsed Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, with John Edwards running in third.

Even before Feb. 5th, voters in four other states will have their say.  Although the Democratic party is not supporting the primary in Michigan, and therefore the candidates have not campaigned there, Michigan Democrats will nonetheless have their chance to vote tomorrow, January 15th.  Similarly, Florida will hold their primary on January 29th, without the support of the party.  Meanwhile, the candidates are campaigning heavily in Nevada, where Democrats will caucus on Saturday, January 19th, and South Carolina, where they will vote on January 26th.

Delegates to the National Democratic Convention are assigned proportionately based upon the vote in the Congressional Districts in these states.  Currently, Hillary Clinton has 24 pledged Democrats to Obama's 25.  A total of 2,025 delegates is needed to win the Democratic nomination.

Stay tuned ....