Senior House T&I Member Anticipates ‘Aggressive Agenda’ if House Flips to Republican Control

What happened: Representative Rick Crawford (R-Ark.), pictured above, a senior member of the House Transportation & Infrastructure (T&I) Committee, addressed ARTBA’s 34th Annual Public Private Partnerships (P3) in Transportation Conference on several issues roiling transportation policy, from the Biden administration’s gas tax suspension proposal to timely distribution of federal-aid transportation dollars under the backdrop of inflationary pressures.

Why it matters: Rep. Crawford is expected to assume a leadership role on transportation issues if Republicans take control of the chamber after the November elections. In remarks before ARTBA attendees, Crawford said that any suspension of the federal gas tax would ‘really be too little, too late and would be hurting the one revenue stream we have for infrastructure investment.’ He noted that its buying power continues to erode because the tax was never indexed to inflation.

Crawford also expressed concern that funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) is not getting to states fast enough. “The efficiency with which that money is delivered needs to be significantly improved,” he said. “Your costs are rising every week and month that the U.S. Department of Transportation delays in getting that capital to you.’

What’s next: In response to a question about his party’s transportation priorities under a potential House Republican majority, Crawford said that the first issues to be tackled would be Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization, which is due by October 2023; preparing for the next surface transportation bill in 2026; and ensuring the IIJA can be ‘most leveraged to do the most good in the shortest amount of time.’