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Infrastructure funding tomorrow’s problem, Democrats say


With help from Brianna Gurciullo and Stephanie Beasley

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— The infrastructure pomp and circumstance is underway in the House. Now what?

— Boeing faces big questions about its past and future as the company disclosed its first full-year loss in decades.

The Interior Department is formally grounding its drone fleet as it reviews the data security of the Chinese-made aircraft.

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“Baby you a song / You make me wanna roll my windows down and cruise.”

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THAT WAS THE EASY PART: OK, so House Democrats’ infrastructure plan is out. We spent Wednesday breaking down what’s in it, how it was rolled out and received, and more. Now what?

Democratic leaders were reticent about how to pay for the $760 billion package, and it’s going to stay that way for the time being. Committee chairmen Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) and Richard Neal (D-Mass.) have said they won’t pursue contentious solutions like a gas tax increase without having conversations with the White House first (even though that’s DeFazio’s preferred pay-for).

The dance of the tarantulas: And a Ways and Means Committee hearing on infrastructure funding shortly after Wednesday’s rollout didn’t really help. If anything, it served to send Democrats’ lofty goals back down to earth, our Tanya Snyder reports. “You’ll hear great agreement up here until it comes down to, ‘Well, how do we pay for this?’” said Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.). “And then it becomes the dance of the tarantulas. One side doesn’t want to commit, because if they stick their head too far out the other side will lop it off.”

The New Democrat Coalition, made up of more than 100 moderate House Democrats, has been surveying its members for how they think infrastructure should be funded. The group’s leadership won’t give out hard numbers, but Chairman Derek Kilmer (D-Wash.) said there’s interest in a variety of methods, ranging from traditional solutions like a gas tax increase and bonding, to more out of the box pay-fors such as a carbon tax or rolling back Republican tax cuts (which, for the record, is how several presidential candidates have said they’d like to pay for infrastructure).

We’re also still waiting for leaders on the Senate Finance Committee, which is tasked with finding a pay-for for that chamber’s own $287 billion surface transportation bill, to tip their hands. One safe bet: There will be many meetings on this over the next few year. (Get in touch if you want to hear our Super Bowl predictions, too. That’s another easy one, we have a 50 percent chance of being right.)

BIG LOSSES AND BIG QUESTIONS FOR BOEING: The company disclosed a full-year loss — its first since the late 1990s — of $636 million on Wednesday, and estimated that its grounded 737 MAX is leading to more than $18 billion in costs. During a call with analysts, Boeing CEO David Calhoun was asked: “How did we get here?” Calhoun responded: “Boy, is that a big question.” He said the design of MCAS, an automated flight control feature, “failed to deal with a boundary condition in an environment we should have known something about,” later clarifying that he was referring to assumptions Boeing had used about pilot response. “The regulators made the same mistake,” he said. “I don’t think culture contributed to that miss.” But Calhoun also said that he knows the company has “things to work on and changes to make.”

In terms of regaining passenger trust, Calhoun said support from pilots will be key when the MAX returns to service. “I can’t market it or merchandise it or hang banners on it or change the name of it,” Calhoun said on a call with reporters. “That won’t convince anybody. But when they see it operating and they see it flown and they see pilots getting on it, I think we’re going to be OK.”

Boeing stopped production of the MAX this month, and Greg Smith, the company’s chief financial officer, said on the analyst call that it expects to restart production at “low rates” this year and then “gradually increase previously planned production rates over the next few years.” The pause and restart are expected to cost about $4 billion.

INTERIOR DRONE GROUNDING GETS REAL: The department is moving to formally restrict the non-emergency use of its drone fleet until a further review has been completed, the agency said Wednesday. As our Stephanie Beasley reports, Secretary David Bernhardt issued an order temporarily banning all but emergency flights, due to cybersecurity concerns over the Chinese-made unmanned aircraft. A senior Interior official told reporters the department will work with intelligence agencies to complete the review “expeditiously” but did not provide a timeline. Interior will continue to use its drones for emergencies like wildfires, search and rescue missions and natural disasters.

ON THE MOVE: The House Homeland Security Committee advanced several transportation security bills on Wednesday, including proposals to grant TSA screeners full collective bargaining rights and for the agency to improve how it coordinates with industry to implement security directives and other changes to existing airport policies. Also approved was a bill that would direct Customs and Border Protection to develop a plan to use non-intrusive scanners on all vehicles entering the country.

NEW TRUCKER TRAINING STANDARDS DELAYED: FMCSA is delaying the compliance date for its rule on minimum training requirements for entry-level truck drivers by two years, setting a new Feb. 7, 2022, deadline. DOT said implementation of the rule, which was finalized more than three years ago, is delayed because it needs more time to set up a registry of training providers, and for states to get ready to receive driver-specific training data. The rule mandates that first-time applicants for a CDL or a license upgrade show behind-the-wheel proficiency in an instructional program that meets certain standards set out by the regulation.

Trucking industry groups largely support the rule, but have been frustrated about the expected and now-confirmed delay, as have safety advocates. “While news of the … delay is not unexpected, it is very disappointing to the entire commercial vehicle training community as well as safety advocates who have seen this as a critical step towards improving highway safety,” said Don Lefeve, president of the Commercial Vehicle Training Association.

MAILBAG: Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) took a swing at Uber and Lyft on Wednesday, chiding the two ride-hailing companies for dragging their feet and refusing to hand over information about their sexual assault prevention practices to his office. Both, he wrote in letters sent this week, have “stonewalled” congressional oversight by failing to send information about training materials they use, processes for evaluating reports of sexual assault, and auditing practices for the third-party companies doing background checks on drivers. If they don’t follow up, Blumenthal warned, “I will have no choice but to insist that you come before Congress.”

Is it an empty threat? Probably. Blumenthal is in the minority on Senate Commerce, so he doesn’t decide who to invite to hearings. And even if he was, Uber and Lyft have already brushed off DeFazio, who tried to pull in executives from the two for a hearing on the same issues and more. So don’t expect the CEOs to take a seat at a Dirksen witness table anytime soon.

But the bottom line is: There’s an increasingly vocal coalition of Democrats who are frustrated with the ride-hailing companies, both for their policies and for their disinclination to engage with lawmakers.

— “Lawmakers push for lower legal BAC limit.” POLITICO New York.

— “‘Peak car’ may be past, German CEO says.” Bloomberg.

— “UPS is buying thousands of electric vans and teaming up with Waymo to accelerate the future of delivery.” The Verge.

— “Lyft plans job cuts as part of restructuring.” New York Times.

— “Tesla’s rival Rivian will help build Lincoln’s first electric car.” BusinessInsider.

DOT appropriations run out in 244 days. The FAA reauthorization expires in 1,339 days. Highway and transit policy is up for renewal in 244 days.





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