Congress has cleared pension legislation that would provide temporary relief for single-employer and multi-employer pension funds, as well as individual retirees, who have seen their funds decline because of the downturn in the financial markets. Final congressional approval came Dec. 11 when the Senate passed the measure by unanimous consent. The House had approved the bill the previous day. Mark Ayers, president of the AFL-CIO's Building and Construction Trades Dept., said in a letter to state and local BCTD leaders that the legislation "would provide funding relief for the vast majority of building trades' multiemployer plans...which, like most pension plans,
An economic stimulus package is coming, and President-elect Barack Obama has made it clear that infrastructure will be part of it. Obama is not saying how large the plan or its public-works share will be but anxious state and industry officials are assembling lists of projects they would like the stimulus to fund, hoping the password to get those projects included is “ready to go.” Photo: Guy Lawrence / ENR President-elect’s program includes roads, schools, energy upgrades. Related Links: Utah, Florida Lead List For Highway Stimulus Plans Infrastructure advocates’ eyes lit up on Dec. 6 when Obama in a radio
As the incoming Obama administration and congressional Democrats work on an economic stimulus plan, state transportation officials say there are more than 5,100 jobs-creating highway projects worth $64.3 billion that could get under way quickly if funding became available. The $64-billion total in the report, released Dec. 5 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, is more than triple the sum contained in a survey AASHTO conducted in January. President-elect Barack Obama has signaled that public-works funding, including aid for highways, is likely to be part of a stimulus plan expected to be proposed in January. But
Plans for a $5-billion rail transit extension towards northern Virginia's Dulles International Airport have cleared an important hurdle, with the Federal Transit Administration's Dec. 3 approval of a $900-million, multi-year funding commitment to the project's $2.6-billion first phase. The deal isn't done yet, however. The proposed commitment still needs approval by U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters and the Office of Management and Budget. Sarah Echols, a U.S. DOT spokesperson, said, "The department is continuing to review this complex project to ensure it meets all statutory requirements and additional conditions agreed to by the project sponsors." Such reviews traditionally take about
Amtrak has tapped Joseph H. Boardman, the head of the Federal Railroad Administration, as its new president and CEO, on a one-year appointment. Boardman, FRA administrator since 2005, began his new job on Nov. 26. Amtrak will look for a permanent CEO and Boardman could be a candidate for that post, says Amtrak spokesman Cliff Black. Boardman succeeds Alexander Kummant, who resigned the top Amtrak position on Nov. 14. Boardman, New York State Dept. of Transportation commissioner from 1997 to 2005, takes over at Amtrak shortly after enactment of a bill authorizing $5.3 billion over five years for the railroad’s
Momentum is building for an economic-stimulus package that includes substantial funding for infrastructure. With the recession straining many states’ budgets, governors and state legislators on Dec. 1 weighed in with a call for the incoming Obama administration and new Congress to include up to $136 billion for “ready-to-go” projects in a stimulus plan expected to be unveiled early in January. Photo: AP/Wideworld Rendell (L) leads governors’ push for funding. Governors, led by Pennsylvania’s Edward Rendell (D), made their pitch personally to President-elect Barack Obama at a Dec. 2 meeting in Philadelphia. Obama told the governors that “this administration does not
The debate over whether the Environmental Protection Agency should use cost-benefit analysis to help determine possible upgrades to existing powerplants has hit the Supreme Court. Oral arguments on Dec. 2 dealt with an appeal of a lower-court decision striking down a 2004 EPA rule allowing costs of upgrades to be weighed against environmental benefits. At issue are older powerplants that use once-through cooling systems, which draw millions of gallons of water to cool their facilities. Environmental groups want older plants to be retrofitted with closed-cycle cooling systems, which use cooling towers. Entergy Corp. argues that upgrade costs could approach $1.5
The Housing and Urban Development Dept. on Nov. 26 parceled out $2.1 billion in Community Development Block Grants to help 13 states and Puerto Rico rebuild from 2008 storms and other natural disasters. Texas gets $1.3 billion, Louisiana $438 million and Iowa $125 million. Some funds can go for infrastructure repairs. The allotment is part of $6.5 billion in CDBG disaster aid contained in a spending bill enacted on Oct. 1.
With economic trouble buffeting many states' budgets, governors and legislators are asking Congress and the incoming Obama administration for tens of billions of dollars in federal aid in what they hope will be a new economic-stimulus bill. The states' request could include up to $136 billion for highways and other infrastructure projects. Office of Pennsylvania Gov. Rendell Rendell says funds would go for major project, not potholes. President-elect Barack Obama has said that a new stimulus measure would be his first order of business after he takes office. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has said key committee chairmen are working
Amtrak has named the head of the Federal Railroad Administration, Joseph H. Boardman, to be the company's president and CEO, on a one-year appointment. The passenger railroad said that Boardman, who had been FRA Administrator since 2005, began his new job on Nov. 26. Board Chairman Donna McLean said the company will undertake a search for a permanent CEO. Boardman could be a candidate for the permanent CEO post, says Amtrak spokesman Cliff Black. At FRA, Boardman was the U.S. Dept. of Transportation's designee on Amtrak's board. Before coming to the rail agency, he was commissioner of the New York