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— An infrastructure plan that Democrats will unveil today takes aim at climate change in every transportation sector, and looks to meet the goals set out in the Green New Deal.
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— The two Democratic senators from Illinois met with Amtrak CEO Richard Anderson this week and got him to commit to several measures to improve the railroad’s accessibility, after a high-profile flub in which wheelchair users were charged $25,000 for a short ride.
— Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao announced several new initiatives to combat human trafficking, including grants, a new award and a challenge to industry leaders to increase training and awareness.
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WITH GREEN-TINTED GLASSES, DEMOCRATS SHOWCASE THEIR INFRASTRUCTURE PLANS: House Democrats are rolling out an infrastructure framework today, anchored by Transportation Chairman Peter DeFazio’s surface transportation bill, which POLITICO got a draft of. The climate-centric proposal will be a radical departure from past highway-era bills, DeFazio said. “It is going to set a path for the 21st century to defossilize transportation, which is the single largest contributor [of greenhouse gas emissions],” he told reporters. “We’re looking at every sector under my jurisdiction and attempting to meet the goals of the Green New Deal.” Specifics include building carbon neutral federal buildings, leading a transition to renewable fuels for aviation, using climate-friendly building materials, and boosting rail and transit options.
His bill is part of a broad infrastructure package that Speaker Nancy Pelosi is expected to officially announce today, marking a reboot of Democrats’ infrastructure efforts after talks fell apart with the White House last year. As our Tanya Snyder writes, the reality is the package is “little more than an amalgamation of existing legislative efforts,” albeit ambitious ones like DeFazio’s surface bill. One industry source called the whole thing a “political statement,” saying it’s designed to appeal to Obama-Trump voters.
Will it pick up any GOP support? Republicans in the House have their own ideas about what surface transportation legislation should include, and while there’s some overlap, the priorities are unsurprisingly not quite aligned. In principles released Tuesday night, Republican leaders on T&I called for breaking away from the gas tax, prioritizing innovation, streamlining permitting and focusing attention on rural infrastructure needs. “We’re interested in working on anything,” said ranking member Sam Graves (R-Mo.), even potentially provisions related to climate. “Peter and I have been talking. This is their initial rung, so yeah, we’ll take a look at it.” Senate Republicans, of course, have already passed a surface transportation bill out of committee, containing a first-ever climate title.
The funding conundrum: So far, Democrats are staying quiet about how they plan to pay for the package. DeFazio has proposed a plan to issue infrastructure bonds and pay them back by increasing fuel taxes and indexing them to inflation, but leadership has not yet endorsed it. “The absence of a concrete and politically palatable proposal on funding could doom this plan to the same fate as other campaign promises from every politician from Barack Obama to Trump,” Tanya writes.
Ready to reignite the PFC debate: One piece of legislation expected to be part of the broader infrastructure package will inevitably renew a fight between airlines and airports: an increase in the cap on the passenger facility charge, a fee that airports charge passengers, and using the proceeds to fund infrastructure improvements. Defazio has long been interested in raising the cap, and has support from some Republicans.
AMTRAK MAKES PROMISES TO GET BETTER ON ACCESSIBILITY: Illinois’ senators met with Anderson on Tuesday, and said they got commitments from him to make changes around accessibility. The meeting came on the tail of an incident earlier this month in which Amtrak charged a group of wheelchair users $25,000 for a short trip, but ultimately backed down and apologized after criticism from Sen. Tammy Duckworth and others.
Duckworth and Dick Durbin said Anderson agreed to conduct a comprehensive review of the railroad’s disability and accessibility policies, create a related new position on the railroad’s executive leadership team, and work with them to institute a seat on Amtrak’s board for a member of the disability community. “It is long past time for Amtrak to implement policies that go above bare minimum federal requirements and do more to protect the dignity of passengers with a disability,” said Duckworth, who uses a wheelchair.
DOT LAUNCHES HUMAN TRAFFICKING INITIATIVE: Chao launched several new initiatives aimed at fighting human trafficking on Tuesday. She challenged transportation industries to train their workforce and raise awareness. She also established an annual $50,000 award for innovative solutions to combat trafficking. And DOT announced $5.4 million in grant selections for 24 organizations, through the FTA’s Human Trafficking Awareness and Public Safety Initiative.
A NEW NAME FOR 1200 NEW JERSEY? A bevy of senators introduced legislation this week that would rename DOT headquarters after William Coleman, the fourth Transportation Secretary and first African American to serve in that position. Coleman was DOT chief during Gerald Ford’s presidency, and before that was a distinguished attorney who co-authored the legal brief in Brown v. Board of Education and served on the Warren Commission investigating the Kennedy assassination. He died in 2017 at the age of 96.
ICAO EXPLAINS: The International Civil Aviation Organization, which came under fire for blocking critics of its Taiwan policy on social media, is standing its ground against what it said is an organized campaign to misrepresent its position. Spokesperson Anthony Philbin said the organization, which is aiding the U.N.’s response to the coronavirus outbreak, is not responsible for the U.N.’s 1971 decision to remove Taiwan.
“In light of our many public statements over the years on this issue, and the clear intent of the campaigners to misrepresent the factual context involved here, we felt we were completely warranted in taking the steps we did to defend the integrity of the information and discussions our followers should reasonably expect from our feeds,” Philbin said of the Twitter blocking.
CHIEF OF AIR MARSHAL SERVICE RETIRING: David Kohl, the director of the Federal Air Marshal Service, will step down at the end of March after two years in the job, our Stephanie Beasley reports. He’s been with FAMS since 2002 and had been the top air marshal in Chicago before taking charge. Deputy Director Michael Ondocin is next in line to lead the service. TSA confirmed Kohl’s retirement but didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on who would fill the post.
FREIGHTS MAKING PTC PROGRESS: As of Dec. 31, positive train control was in operation on the vast majority of freight railroad track, according to data released by the Association of American Railroads. Class I railroads are on track to meet a final statutory deadline of Dec. 31 of this year, AAR said, with several railroads already operating the technology across their entire required footprint. “Railroads are committed to an accident-free future, and fully implementing PTC continues our industry’s progress toward that ultimate target,” said AAR CEO Ian Jefferies.
— “Virginia could ditch jail time for drivers going 81 mph in a 70 mph zone.” WTOP.
— “United Airlines cancels some China flights due to ‘significant decline in demand’ as coronavirus spreads.” CNBC.
— “FedEx CEO sees vindication ahead for his anti-Amazon strategy.” Bloomberg.
— “Kobe Bryant’s death puts a focus on helicopter safety.” NPR.
— “The new Cadillacs are getting automatic lane-changing, thanks to updated Super Cruise.” The Verge.
DOT appropriations run out in 245 days. The FAA reauthorization expires in 1,340 days. Highway and transit policy is up for renewal in 245 days.
