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Hoboken-Today, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood stood with U.S. Senators Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ) and Robert Menendez (D-NJ), and U.S. Rep Albio Sires (D-NJ-13), urging the House of Representatives to follow the Senate's lead and move quickly to pass a bipartisan transportation jobs bill.Last week, an overwhelming bipartisan majority in the Senate passed the "Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act," a surface transportation bill which will create or maintain 2.8 million jobs nationwide.Speaking at the Hoboken Train Station, the federal officials were joined by New Jersey transportation advocates to stress the importance of the legislation, which would provide New Jersey with $500 million for transit projects and $1 billion per year in highways funds.

The Senate transportation bill, which was approved last Wednesday by an overwhelming 74-22 margin, would relieve road congestion, expand transit and rail systems, and direct billions to American workers rebuilding the nation's aging infrastructure.The legislation is particularly important for New Jersey, where it would support 54,200 jobs in a state economy powered by regional transportation systems.New Jersey commuters would get immediate relief through restoration of the commuter tax benefit, which allows mass transit riders to set aside an untaxed $240 monthly to pay for commuting costs.

"I'm thrilled that the Senate has passed a bipartisan transportation bill that will put millions of Americans back to work repairing our aging transportation infrastructure,"said Secretary LaHood."If the House follows their lead, we can relieve congestion on our roads, expand our transit and rails systems, and provide Americans with safe, affordable ways to reach their destinations when gas prices are high."

"House Republicans should back away from the extreme Tea Party ideology and pass the Senate transportation bill that will rebuild our nation's crumbling transportation systems and put millions of American to work,"said Sen. Lautenberg, Chairman of the Commerce Subcommittee on Surface Transportation."In New Jersey, we need this bill to help reduce traffic congestion, benefit transit commuters, and boost our economy.Funding for America's transportation system expires at the end of the month.It's time for the House GOP to complete this bill so we can keep people on the job rebuilding America's infrastructure."

"This bill represents years of bipartisan work to invest in our infrastructure, create good jobs for New Jerseyans and give us the transportation network we need for our workers to get to their jobs, for our families to meet their needs, and for our businesses to thrive,"said Senator Menendez."The toughest work is done.The Senate's acted to create jobs and keep commuters moving.Now it's time for House Republicans to get on board and do their part for New Jersey."

"I am pleased that the Senate passed this bill, which will provide important funding for our country's transportation needs,"said Rep. Sires."I hope my colleagues in the House will create jobs and keep commuters moving. Now it's time for House Republicans to get on board and do their part for New Jersey."

As Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation and Community Development, Menendez fought for key provisions in the bill. Highlights include:

  • Roughly $1 billion per year in highway funding for NJ and $63 Million More Per Year for Transit in New Jersey. By cutting waste and eliminating earmarks, the bill will provide New Jersey $519 million in federal formula transit funding, an increase of over $63 million per year. If passed by the House, New Jersey would receive more federal formula transit funding per year than ever before -- without increased overall federal spending.
  • Protects or Creates More than 2 Million Jobs Nationwide Including More than 54,000 Highway and Transit Jobs in New Jersey.
  • New $20 Million Transit Oriented Development Planning Program. The $20 million program will help communities create more livable communities by planning new development around new transit hubs. The provision is based on similar language in Senator Menendez's Livable Communities Act, and in New Jersey would work in tandem with the state's Transit Village program.
  • Increased Funding for the National Transit Institute at Rutgers (NTI) [$5million]. NTI provides training, education, and clearinghouse services in support of public transportation and quality of life for the entire nation. In recent years this important national program has seen its funding slashed, despite the increased need for training in the face of an ongoing wave of retirements in the industry. This bill will raise NTI's funding to $5 million per year from $3.8 million.
  • Increased Clean Fuels Program Funding [From $51.5M to $65M]. This competitive program for clean fuel transit vehicles and for refueling infrastructure will help agencies switch from dirty, expensive fuels, to cleaner, cheaper fuels. This will help improve air quality and allow transit agencies to untether themselves from volatile oil prices.
  • Increased Funding for Transportation for Seniors and the Disabled [NJ Funding Goes From $6.5 M to $7.8 M]. Funding will help meet increasing demand for senior transportation.
  • Streamlined, Reformed "New Starts" Process. The bill streamlines the process for federal approval of new projects and allows projects designed to increase capacity on existing systems rather than just allow new systems or new lines. Older systems such as New Jersey's that are at capacity could, for instance, use the program to add a new station or add another track.
  • The Sustainable Water Infrastructure Act. The bill includes provision from Menendez that will create private sector jobs rebuilding our nation's crumbling water infrastructure. It does this by removing caps on private activity bonds for water and wastewater projects from the annual volume caps - making these projects more affordable. This will allow communities to leverage private capital markets in combination with other financial mechanisms to finance water and wastewater infrastructure projects.

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