October 2004

Congress Enacts Extension of TEA-21

On Thursday, September 30, just before the current TEA-21 extension expired, Congress enacted a sixth extension of TEA-21 that will fund surface transportation programs, including highway safety, through May 31, 2005. The bill restores the $1.8 billion in highway funding that was withheld in the last TEA-21 extension and provides additional highway, transit and highway safety funding. It also recaptures funding that was lost as a result of ethanol subsidies, provides all states with a 90.5% return on their deposits into the Highway Trust Fund and waives the Byrd amendment that would have shut down the Trust Fund due to insufficient revenues. It also extends the funding guarantees and firewalls built into TEA-21 programs. The amount of federal highway safety funding that will distributed to the states is likely to be limited since the appropriations is only through November 20.

Reauthorization Challenge

According to GHSA Executive Director Barbara Harsha, the reauthorization of TEA-21 will likely face difficulties in Congress next year for several reasons.

• There is likely to be pressure to substantially lower the deficit by reducing federal spending, which may translate into less funding for TEA-21 programs.
• The chairman of key Senate committees will change as a result of term limits. Sen. McCain (R-AZ) will leave the Senate Commerce Committee (which has jurisdiction over federal highway safety grant programs). Sen. Hollings (D-SC), ranking minority member of the Committee will retire at the end of the current session. There will also be new chairman of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committees. If the Senate changes hands, then additional changes will be made in chairmanships. On the House side, Rep. Lipinski (D-IL), ranking member of the Transit and Highways Subcommittee, is retiring.
• No bills can be carried over since the next session is a new session (the 109th) of Congress. The bills currently enacted by the House and Senate will have to be reintroduced in each of the authorizing committees. Each bill will go through the regular legislative process in each chamber. Consequently, the authorizing committees will use the bills currently enacted by each chamber as starting points only.

Also, depending on which party wins the Presidential election, changes are very likely to occur in DOT and NHTSA at high-ranking levels.

Overview of Highway Safety Funding, Past and Present

The Highway Safety Act of 1966 initiated and funded the first national effort to reduce traffic deaths. Congress expressed its special interest in certain aspects of traffic safety, often referred to as the behavioral aspect of highway safety, in recognition that reducing deaths and injuries goes beyond employing infrastructure design standards to construct roadways. Congress realized that in order to have a lasting effect, states must also address the manner in which the driver drives on the roadways. Changing these driving behaviors is the traditional challenge to improving traffic safety.

Over the course of the last nearly 40 years Congress has enacted multi-year funding packages. As part of the annual federal surface transportation funding bills, states received funds for programs to address the human behavioral aspect of traffic crashes. Congress recognized that multi-year funding is essential to the states to provide a means of stable funding to address human behavior. Psychologists have long known that changing behavior is a long-term endeavor.

In 1998, Congress enacted the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), which authorized the Federal surface transportation programs for highways, highway safety, and transit for a 6-year period from 1998-2003.

TEA-21 expired on September 30, 2003. Since then, continued funding has been in the form of various short extensions to the Act. States are anxiously awaiting enactment of a new surface transportation bill, as each delay represents a delay in implementing or continuing programs and activities with proven track records in reducing deaths and injuries.

Yesterday and Today

The success of the highway safety program is undeniable. Over the years, despite huge increases in drivers, vehicles and traffic, the federal standards and programs for motor vehicle and highway safety instituted since 1966 have contributed to a significant reduction in the fatality rate per 100 million miles of travel. The rate has decreased from 5.5 in the mid-60's to 3.18 in the mid-80's to its current level of 1.48. The U.S. Department of Transportation has an ambitious goal of further reducing the traffic fatality rate to 1.0 per 100 million vehicle miles traveled by 2008.

In announcing the new national goal, U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta stated, "America's roads and highways are safer than ever. The decreasing number of traffic fatalities and record low death rate on our roads shows that we are headed down the right road - one that leads to a safer America." Secretary Mineta pointed to efforts of campaigns to encourage safety belt use and discourage impaired driving, by efforts of state legislatures to pass tougher safety belt and drunk driving laws, and rulemaking efforts to improve vehicle safety standards as being contributing factors of success.

Reauthorization of TEA-21

State and local highway safety officials acknowledge past successes, and also embrace the challenge of the new national goal. The national goal was announced at the GHSA Annual Meeting in 2003. In 2004, the Association's Annual Meeting focused on how to achieve this goal. See the full text of the news release here.

However, the traffic safety community also understands that achieving the goal will not be an easy task and cannot occur without a stable source of funding in the coming years. A comprehensive funding package is absolutely critical. Reauthorizing TEA-21 has been a top priority for GHSA members. GHSA strongly encourages Congress to complete its work and enact a new multi-year funding bill.

The following links provide background on GHSA's involvement in the reauthorization of TEA-21:

GHSA Testifies at Senate Hearing on Reauthorization. For the news release, click here. The full text of the testimony is also available by clicking here.

State Associations, Transportation and Highway Safety Groups Tell Congress: No New Sanctions

State Highway Safety Offices Praise House Action on Transportation Reauthorization

States Say DOT Highway Proposal is Inadequate for their Safety Needs

GHSA Responses to Senate Commerce Committee Questions

Sen. Bond Joins Groups Forming State Highway Safety Alliance

TEA-21 Reauthoriztion Recommendation Report