Washington, DC - In a letter sent today, Senators Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, Tim Johnson (D-SD), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, and Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, wrote Senate colleagues to highlight the need for action to protect 3 million transportation-related jobs, which are at risk due to severe funding shortfalls projected after the expiration of the transportation law, Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), in September 2014.

The letter explains that Congress must act to ensure the long-term solvency of the Highway Trust Fund and to protect over 3 million jobs nationwide.

Chairmen Boxer, Johnson and Rockefeller also released a state-by-state list of the funding and number of jobs that will be lost unless we act to address the Highway Trust Fund shortfall.

The full text of the letter is below:

CONGRESS MUST ACT TO ADDRESS THE HIGHWAY TRUST FUND SHORTFALL
WITH ALMOST 3 MILLION JOBS AT STAKE

July 25, 2013

Dear Colleague:

We want to bring to your attention a matter of great concern that will have a significant impact on the people of your state. We are facing a crisis when the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) expires in September 2014 when the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) is expected to experience a severe shortfall.
MAP-21 ensures the solvency of the HTF only until the law expires. If the pending HTF shortfall were to be addressed solely by cutting spending, obligations in 2015 from the Highway Account of the HTF and from the Mass Transit Account would need to be cut by 100 percent. This would jeopardize almost 3 million jobs nationwide, including jobs supported by the enhanced Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) program. Further, it would defund critical safety oversight programs for the drivers of our nation's roads. Simply put, the economy of our nation is at stake.

The impacts of these cuts to your state would be extremely harmful - to the economy, to jobs, and to the safety and mobility of travelers. Attached is a state-by-state list of the funding and number of jobs that will be lost as a result of funding cuts in highways and public transportation if we do not act to address the HTF shortfall.

A strong transportation system is vital to ensuring the economic competitiveness of the United States and this requires maintaining federal investments in our transportation infrastructure. We must work together in a bipartisan way to address this challenge, find a dependable source of sustainable funding for the HTF, and keep the nation's transportation systems strong.

Please support our efforts to solve this crisis as we seek to move forward in a bipartisan way to find stable sources of funding.

Sincerely,

Barbara Boxer
Chairman
Committee on Environment and Public Works

John D. Rockefeller IV
Chairman
Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation

Tim Johnson
Chairman
Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs