ALEXANDRIA, VA – The National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association (NSSGA) Vice President of Government and Regulatory Affairs Michele Stanley issued the following statement after Chairman Carper (DE) and Ranking Member Capito (WV), introduced the bipartisan Surface Transportation Reauthorization Act of 2021. The bill will next head to mark-up by the full Committee this week as the other Senate Committees with jurisdiction continue to craft their infrastructure titles.

“We greatly appreciate the leadership of Senate Environment & Public Works Committee (EPW) Chairman Carper (DE) and Ranking Member Capito (WV), and applaud their staffs for their tireless work, for introducing the bipartisan Surface Transportation Reauthorization Act of 2021. This Congress, Chairman Carper and Ranking Member Capito have embraced the bipartisan process and we are appreciative to see this momentum continue with the introduction of a multi-year surface transportation reauthorization package.

“As our country continues to recover from a devastating pandemic, federal infrastructure investment will put Americans back to work and keep our economy competitive on the world stage. This robust surface transportation reauthorization package invests $303.5 billion over five years into highway, road and bridge networks. This is a needed 34 percent increase in federal funding over the last surface transportation reauthorization, the FAST ACT, which passed Congress in 2015. We thank the Committee for listening to stakeholder input as this important legislation incorporates essential policies for our industry such as codifying the “One Federal Decision” as well as provides increased flexibility for state Departments of Transportation with their federal funds.

“We are excited to work with all EPW Committee Members as this bill heads to markup this week and we encourage the other committees of jurisdiction to pass their titles quickly before the current FAST Act extension expires on September 30. EPW’s introduction and quick markup of The Surface Transportation Reauthorization Act of 2021 is a significant first step and the aggregates industry is ready to help and support this bill as it advances through Congress.” 

CONTACT: Kerry Lynch
(703) 526-1072, klynch@nssga.org