Ryan Budget Would End Highway and Transit Investment in FY 2015
Washington, DC – According to a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) analysis, Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s budget proposal would effectively end Federal highway and transit investments in fiscal year 2015. Using the understanding of the Ryan Budget supplied by Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Democrats, CBO found that highway infrastructure investments would be reduced from $40.3 billion in FY 2014 to $100 million in FY 2015, while the federal transit program would be prevented from operating in FY 2015.
“The CBO analysis that I requested makes clear that Chairman Ryan’s budget does not place us on a “Path to Prosperity” but rather paves a “Road to Ruin” of higher employment and a less competitive nation,” said U.S. Rep. Nick J Rahall, top Democrat on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. “The Republican budget scheme goes further than just cutting our infrastructure investments in transportation; it eliminates the Federal investment in surface transportation almost completely in FY 2015. This approach is completely void of the vision and lacks the leadership that we need to address our staggering infrastructure deficit which demands genuine solutions.”
After providing the $40.3 billion highway investment levels authorized last year in the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) in FY 2014, the Republican budget cuts those levels to only $100 million in FY 2015 – effectively eliminating Federal investment in highways, bridges, and roads across the country. Revenue projections would also prevent the Federal transit program from functioning in FY 2015 under Ryan’s plan. Such dramatic cuts would shut down transit operations and prevent thousands of vital infrastructure projects across the country from moving forward while destroying the jobs and increased economic opportunity that these investments support.
“Rather than wasting more time on this ideologically driven budget that moves the Nation backward, I urge my Republican colleagues to join with Democrats in working on serious proposals to rebuild America’s infrastructure, put Americans back to work, and restore our economic competitiveness,” said Rahall.
The CBO’s analysis based on the understanding of the Ryan Budget supplied by Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Democrats. It provides MAP-21 highway and transit funding levels in FY 2014 and maintains a prudent balance in the Highway Trust Fund. The analysis can be found here.
-30-