Six Ideas for Fixing the Nations Infrastructure Problems. By most accounts, transportation infrastructure in the United States is in serious disrepair. As roads and bridges across the country continue to age and deteriorate, governments at all levels are struggling to pay for maintenance and upkeep not to mention investments in much needed upgrades and new projects. Since the federal Highway Trust Fund was established in the late 1. National Surface Transportation Infrastructure Financing Commission. Without changes to current policy, the commission projects a federal highway and transit funding gap totaling nearly 2. With Congress debating reauthorization of the transportation bill this summer, and with states and localities looking for their own solutions, here are six ideas for fixing the nations infrastructure system how to plan it, how to fund it and how to make it safer and more efficient than ever. Revamp the Highway Trust Fund. Speaking before a conference of state transportation officials in a D. C. hotel ballroom in March, Transportation Secretary Ray La. Hood challenged his audience to ask him some hardball questions. John Schroer, the transportation commissioner from Tennessee, delivered. Schroer wanted to know how Congress and the Obama administration are addressing a situation most state and local transportation officials worry about the future of the gas tax. How Does Stimulus Programs Affect The Money Supply' title='How Does Stimulus Programs Affect The Money Supply' />Two years ago in those economic halcyon days before the socalled Great Recession, I wrote a short article entitled Is Not Spending Money Bad for the E. The state of the US economy can have a big impact on your investment dollars and employment prospects, even if you dont live here. Learn basic economic concepts like. Economic analysis and research summaries for a general audience. Janesville, Wisconsin, where Ryan was born and still lives, is a riverfront city of sixtyfour thousand people in the southeast corner of the state, between Madison. Well, La. Hood replied, were not doing anything about it. Thats a serious problem, according to virtually all transportation experts. The nations highways are primarily financed by the Highway Trust Fund, which gets most of its money from a gas tax of 1. The tax has remained unchanged since 1. As a result, its lost a third of its purchasing power over the past 1. Thats caused both short and long term consequences. In the short term, Congress has had to bail out the trust fund to the tune of 3. In the long term, the situation is even more problematic. As more and more Americans opt for hybrid and electric vehicles and as cars in general continue to become more fuel efficient the highway system faces a future in which it is perpetually underfunded. Its a system, Schroer says today, that is at best archaic. So whats the fix In the short term, a 1. A commission authorized in 2. The 1. 0 cent increase would cost U. S. households an average of 9 per month, which would equate to about 1 percent of household spending on owning and operating vehicles. But even that modest bump may be a difficult sell when the price of gas hovers around 4 per gallon. I dont think that at this time, raising the gas tax is an option, says Bill Kennedy, a county commissioner from Yellowstone County, Mont., and a member of the commission that made the recommendation. I dont think the public is in favor of that. Its not just the federal government thats reluctant to address gas taxes. No state raised its gas taxes last year, and just a handful did in 2. Mindspark Interactive. Help Uninstall EULA Privacy. Mr. Michael Pento serves as the President and founder of Pento Portfolio Strategies. He is a wellestablished specialist in the Austrian School of economics and a. Preliminary versions of economic research. Did Consumers Want Less Debt Consumer Credit Demand Versus Supply in the Wake of the 20082009 Financial Crisis. This article concerns proposals to change the Social Security system in the United States. Electronic Part Catalog Software there. Social Security is a social insurance program officially called Oldage. Minecraft Pc Gamer Demo Fileplanet'>Minecraft Pc Gamer Demo Fileplanet. In the long term, just about everyone besides federal lawmakers endorses a transition from a gas tax to a vehicle miles traveled fee VMT. That would be a truer user fee that pegs drivers payments to their use of roads, essentially solving the funding problem caused by fuel efficient cars. Weve got all these federal policies toward reducing fuel consumption, says Trey Baker of the Texas Transportation Institute, a research group within Texas A M University. How Does Stimulus Programs Affect The Money Supply' title='How Does Stimulus Programs Affect The Money Supply' />But when you drive down fuel consumption, youre driving down the revenue base. What are you going to do when the vehicle fleet looks completely different than it does nowShifting to a VMT system would not be simple, of course. The biggest initial obstacle involves privacy concerns Many drivers dont like the notion of onboard monitors tracking their driving history. Convincing citizens about the necessity of moving to a VMT system might be tough too. According to research conducted by Baker, which involved interviewing focus groups, many Americans have such a minimal understanding of the current funding mechanisms for roads that making the case for a switch could be difficult. Still, there are signs that a miles based fee could be on the horizon Researchers in as many as 1. A. A1C A form of hemoglobin used to test blood sugars over a period of time. ABCs of Behavior An easy method for remembering the order of behavioral components. VMT system, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, and some are finding that it could work. States dont need federal permission to implement a VMT, and some transportation leaders believe the best way to bring about a change from Washington would be by first proving a VMT system is workable at the state level. Get Washington to Take the Issue Seriously. For federal lawmakers on a few key committees, transportation is a major issue. But for most of the rank and file, its far from the front burner. For a lot of folks on the Hill, this is just not important enough, says Susan Binder, a former director of the Federal Highway Administrations Office of Legislative and Governmental Affairs. Its invisible. There are a few players who have been extremely dedicated. The rest just dont seem to have the interest, and its absurd. Transportation experts are trying to change that by engaging both lawmakers and the public. Transportation for America, an advocacy group pushing for greater investment in transportation infrastructure and an emphasis on multimodal solutions, is treating the issue like a political campaign, says James Corless, the organizations director. Meanwhile, those lawmakers who are engaged on the issue often put forth unrealistic proposals. House Republicans are seeking to limit highway spending to revenue from the trust fund, which could result in significantly less annual spending on federal transportation programs. Republican Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin has proposed a budget that calls for a 3. His plan suggests that eliminating duplication of various highway programs would be enough to fix the Highway Trust Fund without bailing it out with general funds or raising gas taxes. Critics say that wouldnt be nearly enough to bridge the gap. The White House, meanwhile, has called for a six year surface transportation bill at 5. While Ryans budget fails to explain the sources of the savings, President Obamas budget fails to describe the sources of revenue. State leaders say they need a fully funded, long term bill, and that the series of ad hoc spending measures that have funded surface transportation since the previous bill expired in September 2. Compounding that problem are the upcoming elections in 2. Many experts believe that if Congress passes a reauthorization bill before the elections, states would get less money than if it occurred afterward. For that reason, some state transportation officials are now pushing for a two year bill instead of a six year one, with the logic that more funding may become available if theyre willing to wait. For what its worth, Florida Rep. John Mica, who chairs the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, vigorously supports a six year plan. At a recent meeting of state transportation leaders, Mica joked, Anyone who talks about anything less, Ill take you outside and beat the crap out of you. Empower State and Local Governments. States pay for about two thirds of surface transportation spending. With less money available from the feds, their portion may need to grow an increasingly familiar storyline in all areas of funding right now.