Is there a transportation planner out there who hasn’t at one time or another been frustrated by the time it takes to approve and build a road or bridge project? Large or small, the time involved in bringing these projects to fruition can sometimes take up a good chunk of one’s career! Well, the time is now to weigh in with your federal lawmakers on legislative fixes because several lawmakers have already stepped forward with potential solutions.
Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) recently announced her soon-to-be-introduced legislation that would lessen the time it takes to get through the permitting process needed in order to build large-scale infrastructure projects.
On the other side of the Capitol, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) announced that streamlining the time it takes to receive permitting approval will be a top issue when his committee begins working on a new bill to reauthorize the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (commonly known as MAP-21), which expires after fiscal 2014. He intends to build on the streamlining process legislators began while crafting MAP-21, during which they expanded the list of categorical exclusions and established stricter penalties for agencies that do not meet review deadlines.
House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee ranking member, Nick Rahall (D-W.Va.), has also weighed in on the infrastructure and streamlining front by introducing legislation that would authorize $5.5 billion to replace and repair structurally deficient bridges. While he has been somewhat critical of the emphasis lawmakers put on streamlining in MAP-21, his criticism is more focused on the need to direct more attention and federal funding toward the bridge repair and maintenance program, than it is critical of streamlining in and of itself.
With less than 2 years until MAP-21 expires, don’t waste time in communicating examples of your infrastructure project streamlining needs to your TFG project manager, who can help you package your experience and ideas for your congressional members to share with the Congress.
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