Offices: NCSL Headquarters, 7700 East First Place, Denver, CO 80230 State-Federal Relations, 444 N. Capitol Street, NW, Suite 515, Washington, DC 20001

Water Legislation Flowing Forward

Both the U.S. House of Representatives

and U.S. Senate have now made

appointments to a conference committee

to iron out the differences between the two

chambers’ water resource development

bills. The House has appointed 28

conferees to the Senate’s eight.

The Olmstead Locks and Dam project would be funded under both versions of the bill. Photo: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

One of the key differences between the

two bills—H.R. 3080, passed by the

House on Oct. 23, and S. 601, passed by

the Senate on May 15—concerns the

Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF),

which funds harbor improvement and

maintenance projects across the nation.

The Senate version would spend all the

money in the HMTF by 2020, while the

House bill maxes out at spending 80

Federal News and Trends . 12

2013 Elections .......................... 3

Flyers with Disabilities .......... 3

Google Glass While Driving . 4

Zero-emission Vehicles .......... 4

Virginia’s PPP Case ................ 5

New NCSL Resources ............ 5

Other New Reports ................ 6

NCSL Fall Forum .................... 6

IN THIS ISSUE:

TRANSPORT REPORT

November 2013 Volume 4: Issue 8

News, Trends and Analysis Provided by NCSL’s Transportation Programs

FEDERAL TRANSPORTATION

NEWS AND TRENDS

percent of the money in the same

timeframe. Today, only about half of

HMTF funds are used for harbor

maintenance and improvements. NCSL

has sent letters to both the House and

Senate outlining relevant NCSL policy and

urging full use of the HMTF.

Ben Husch

State-Federal Relations

NCSL-D.C.

202-624-7779

ben.husch@ncsl.org

Jaime Rall

Transportation Program

NCSL-Denver

303-856-1417

jaime.rall@ncsl.org

NCSL CONTACTS:

NCSL at Work for You

Year-in and year-out, NCSL advocates for

the interests of states and state legislatures.

In addition to our work on federal water

resources legislation (see above), NCSL also

recently sent a letter to the U.S. House

Transportation and Infrastructure

Committee in support of a dedicated source

of federal funding for intercity passenger

rail, noting that federal support is

imperative to the work these systems do to

alleviate congestion and aid the

environment. The committee will soon

begin its work to reauthorize the Passenger

Rail Investment and Improvement Act

(PRIIA) of 2008, which authorizes funding

for Amtrak and strengthens the U.S.

passenger rail network.

2

New CMAQ Guidance Issued

The U.S. Department of Transportation

issued an interim guidance on Nov. 12

concerning the Congestion Mitigation and

Air Quality (CMAQ) Improvement Program.

Under the Moving Ahead for Progress in

the 21st Century (MAP-21) Act, the CMAQ

program provides about $2.2 billion to

states and other sponsors each year for

surface transportation projects that improve

air quality and relieve congestion. The new

guidance is open for public comment until

Jan. 13, 2014, and addresses flexibility and

transferability options, eligible geographic

areas and project selection processes.

Bridge Over Not-So-Troubled Water

On Nov. 7, the U.S. Department of

Transportation announced a $474 million

Transportation Infrastructure Finance

Innovation Act (TIFIA) loan for rebuilding

the Goethals Bridge between New York

and New Jersey. The loan will help offset

the cost of a $1.5 billion public-private

partnership to replace the 85-year-old

bridge with a new, modern structure. That

same day, the department also approved a

$1.6 billion TIFIA loan for New York’s

Tappan Zee Bridge replacement project.

Merge Forth!

The U.S. Department of Justice has agreed

to settle a lawsuit that was blocking the

merger of American Airlines and U.S.

Airways. Under the settlement, the airlines

must divest a number of their slots and

gates at seven key constrained airports to

allow for more competition from other

airlines. To keep small and medium-sized

communities from being negatively affected

by the divesture, the new company agreed

to devote all its commuter slots at Reagan

National Airport in Washington, D.C., for

service to those communities.

Pilot Training Rules No Longer Up

In the Air

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

unveiled updates to its pilot training

requirements on Nov. 5, as originally

ordered by Congress in 2010. The FAA

indicated that these stricter rules—which

will use flight simulator training systems

and include training on how to prevent and

recover from aerodynamic stalls—could

cost the airline industry up to $350 million.

It’s a Bird... It’s a Plane...

On Nov. 7, the FAA released the first

annual Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS)

Roadmap outlining the policies needed to

safely integrate UAS, or “drones,” into the

nation’s airspace. The FAA will choose six

UAS test sites to start the work towards full

implementation of drones nationwide.

Go-Go-Gadget Flight

The FAA issued new guidance to allow

airline passengers to use digital devices

throughout a flight, including during takeoffs

and landings—but cell phones will still have

to be kept in “airplane mode.”

Did You Know?

There's so much

federal

transportation

news, we can't fit it

all in this

newsletter! For

more details on the

latest

Congressional

activities, federal

administration

updates and

announcements

from the U.S.

Department of

Transportation that

affect the states,

check out the new

Federal

Transportation

Update from

NCSL's D.C. team.

3

According to NCSL’s StateVote, off-year

elections tend to be quiet affairs, and 2013

was no exception. With regular legislative

elections scheduled in only New Jersey

and Virginia, plus 16 special elections in

eight other states to fill vacated seats, 2013

had the fewest number of state-level

contests of the decade and no legislative

chambers changed hands.

In addition to candidate races, voters in six

states weighed in on a total of 31 statewide

ballot measures, of which a whopping

27 were approved. Maine voters said yes to

five bond measures to finance

infrastructure and higher education

construction, including a $100 million bond

issue for highway, bridge, port, rail, aviation

and transit projects.

On Nov. 4, U.S. Secretary of

Transportation Anthony Foxx announced

that, in an ongoing effort to ensure equal

access to air transportation for all

travelers, the U.S. Department of

Transportation (U.S. DOT) will require

airline websites and automated airport

kiosks to be accessible to passengers with

disabilities. Airlines will have several years

to comply with these and other new rules,

which are part of the ongoing

implementation of the Air Carrier Access

Act of 1986. On the same day these rules

were announced, the U.S. DOT fined U.S.

Airways $1.2 million for failing to provide

adequate wheelchair assistance to

passengers with disabilities—one of the

largest fines ever assessed by the

department in a disability case.

CALIFORNIA ENACTS "CLEAN VEHICLES" BILL

Congratulations and welcome, new state legislators!

As a legislator or legislative staffer, you are a member of NCSL and

can get all the tools you need to be successful at your legislative job—absolutely free. Whether it’s 50-state information, same-day

responses to policy questions, or an in-state expert presentation, we are here for you.

Contact us or see our website for more details.

2013 ELECTIONS: FEW CANDIDATE RACES,

HIGH APPROVAL RATE FOR BALLOT MEASURES

FLYING THE MORE ACCESSIBLE SKIES

Did You Know?

NCSL—for good

reason—is widely

regarded as the

nation's expert on

state elections and

ballot measures.

Check out our Web

resources on this

year's elections,

initiatives and

referenda, and

ballot measures

back to 1892 (!).

Plus, visit our

StateVote

homepage for the

nation’s most

comprehensive

data and analysis of

legislative and

statewide ballot

measures and

elections, both

historical and

current.

4

On Oct. 29, the California Highway Patrol

issued what may be the first ticket for

wearing Google Glass, a wearable,

spectacles-like computer that

communicates with the Internet through

voice commands. The citation raised

questions across the country about the

legal status of using Google Glass on the

road as the device keeps moving closer to

mainstream use.

In 2013 legislative sessions, at least three states considered bills to ban the use of “wearable computers with head mounted display” (such

as this Google Glass device) while driving. Photo: TechHive

To the best of NCSL’s knowledge, no

state has yet specifically prohibited using

Google Glass while driving, although

Delaware, New Jersey and West Virginia

considered relevant bills in 2013.

Several states do, however, have

distracted driving statutes or other laws

that might apply. The California infraction,

for example, references a state law that

bans driving while a video display is

operating and visible to the driver.

A federal response stated that while the

National Highway Traffic Safety

Administration (NHTSA) is “not specifically

working to research Google glasses at this

time, the agency is working on a second

set of distraction guidelines … that will be

applicable to various types of portable and

aftermarket devices.” Meanwhile, Google

updated its terms of service to discourage

use of any of its mobile services “in a way

that distracts you and prevents you from

obeying traffic or safety laws.”

In 2012, according to NHTSA, 3,328

people were killed and 421,000 were

injured in crashes involving a distracted

driver. For more information, check out

NCSL’s distracted driving resources.

Governors of eight states signed an

agreement on Oct. 24 to put 3.3 million

zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) on the road

by 2025. These states—California,

Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts,

New York, Oregon, Rhode Island and

Vermont—account for 23 percent of the

nation's automobile market. The goal of

the agreement is to increase consumer

demand for ZEVs by building more

charging stations and reducing the cost of

the vehicles. For more details, check out

the November issue of NCSL’s energy

newsletter, Plugged In.

DRIVING DEMAND FOR ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLES

GOOGLE GLASS WHILE DRIVING: IS IT LEGAL?

Did You Know?

With new

technology being

introduced every

day, distracted

driving is a major

traffic safety issue.

Eleven states and

D.C. have banned

hand-held phone

use by all drivers,

while other states

have prohibited cell

phone use by

younger drivers or

school bus drivers,

improved data

collection or limited

local authority on

the issue. Take a

look at NCSL's Web

resources on

distracted driving,

where we closely

monitor the latest

developments.

5

On Oct. 31, the Virginia Supreme Court

upheld the constitutionality of tolling

provisions in the state’s Public-Private

Transportation Act of 1995, which allows

private companies to take on additional

risks and responsibilities for transportation

infrastructure projects. Residents near the

$2 billion Elizabeth River Tunnels Project

had claimed that Virginia's legislature had

unconstitutionally delegated its taxation

powers by allowing the state department

of transportation and private companies to

set toll rates. The court ruled, however,

that tolls are not taxes and the legislature

hadn't illegally delegated its powers. The

decision also offers guidance about how

to keep tolled public-private partnerships

within legal bounds.

Solving the Transportation Funding Crisis

Read this new 2-page LegisBrief to learn how states are leading the

way to find solutions to the nationwide transportation funding crisis.

Plugged In

The October issue of Plugged In, NCSL’s energy newsletter, looks at

how Texas is handling the shale energy boom’s impact on rural roads.

On Being One of the Voices of NCSL

Check out this NCSL blog post about per-mile fees—an alternative to

gas taxes—and a day in the life of an NCSL staffer.

NEW NCSL RESOURCES

NCSL at Work for You

NCSL periodically signs onto amicus (or

“friend of the court”) briefs in cases

being heard in the U.S. Supreme Court

when there is a concern of federalism

impacts to state legislatures. But in the

Virginia PPP case (see left), NCSL took

the highly unusual step of filing this

kind of brief in a state case. Why? NCSL

was concerned that a ruling against

Virginia’s law might hinder other states’

flexibility to pursue such arrangements,

counter to NCSL’s policy that “all

[transportation] funding and financing

options must be available to state

legislatures.”

VIRGINIA SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS PPP LAW

Did You Know?

NCSL's state-

federal policies,

adopted by the

legislators from

across the states at

our annual business

meeting, serve to

guide NCSL's

advocacy efforts

before the federal

government. To see

more policies

related to

transportation

issues (like the

funding and finance

policy referred to at

right), see the policy

page for NCSL's

Natural Resources

and Infrastructure

(NRI) Committee,

made up of state

legislators and

legislative staff from

across the states.

6

New Highway Statistics

The Federal Highway Administration has released new stats, including a chart

of how much states give to (and get back from) the federal highway trust fund.

Funding and Financing Highways and Public Transportation

This Congressional Research Service report looks at the future of federal

transportation funding given gas tax rates and fuel economy improvements.

Emergency Relief Program

Here, the Congressional Research Service explains the federal Emergency

Relief Program, which helps reconstruct highways and bridges after disasters.

2013 Driver Attitudes and Awareness Survey

This University of Kentucky report discusses drivers’ attitudes and behaviors

concerning impaired driving, seat belt use and speeding.

Evaluation of Changes in Teenage Driver Exposure

A recent Highway Loss Data Institute bulletin suggests the decline in teen

driving is due more to unemployment than to cell phones and social media.

Equity Evaluation Of Sustainable Mileage-Based User Fee Scenarios

The Southwest Region University Transportation Center examines potential

equity impacts of a shift from the gas tax to a mileage-based fee in Texas.

The Latest Bike, Walk and Transit Usage Data

The University of Oklahoma recently analyzed the latest Census metrics on

how Americans commute to work, with city-by-city interactive charts.

Costs for Pedestrian and Bicyclist Infrastructure Improvements

This Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center report provides cost

estimates for pedestrian and bicycle improvements to inform decision making.

How to Get the NCSL Transport Report: More than 2,000 federal, state, local and

private sector transportation stakeholders receive this newsletter each month.

If you'd like to get NCSL’s Transport Report in your inbox,

e-mail jaime.rall@ncsl.org with your contact details.

All our past issues are online at http://www.ncsl.org/default.aspx?tabid=21636.

NEW TRANSPORTATION REPORTS

REGISTER NOW: NCSL Fall Forum

Fifty states, one voice. That's the heart of the Fall Forum, where legislators and legislative staff come together to tackle the critical issues facing states and develop the States' Agenda on Capitol Hill. Register now for the NCSL Fall Forum, Dec. 4 – 6, 2013, in Washington, D.C. Plus, you’re invited to attend the Point A to Point B pre-conference on Dec. 3 to discuss how states can better serve the public through quality, accessible transportation options.

Contact Jaime Rall at NCSL for details about this and other transportation events at this year’s Fall Forum.

Sign up soon— it’s almost here!