WASHINGTON, D.C. – As the House Budget Committee marks up the Fiscal Year 2015 budget resolution today, U.S. Rep. Nick J. Rahall (D-WV) slammed the proposal, saying it “would cripple the U.S. transportation system and leave millions of individuals and businesses stranded with little to no transportation options.”
“This proposal takes a partisan jackhammer to our transportation infrastructure at a time when we need to be working together to find ways to rebuild it,” said Rahall, the senior Democrat on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. “This is budget déjà vu. Just like last year, this proposal is another road to ruin, not a ‘path to prosperity.’”
Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s proposal would phase out Essential Air Service subsidies that guarantee air service to 160 small communities across the country. The budget supports eliminating Amtrak operating subsidies, resulting in 36 states and more than 20 million people losing Amtrak service. In addition, the budget assumes virtually no highway or transit investment in FY 2015.
“If you like being stuck in traffic, this budget is for you. But letting our critical infrastructure investments crumble—along with the jobs and economic activity that have always come with them—does not represent sound budgeting. I ask my Republican colleagues to scrap this dangerous proposal and work across the aisle to develop a bipartisan plan that truly addresses our nation’s transportation and infrastructure needs,” said Rahall.