RUSSELLVILLE, Mo. – U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Missouri, visited with local officials in southern Cole County near Russellville, Missouri to speak about roads, bridges and other pieces of infrastructure in Missouri.
Blunt touted a recent and rare compromise in Congress to move a new five-year highway bill which will allot around $300 billion federal dollars for state infrastructure projects. Blunt says having a longer guaranteed plan will ensure a more effective use of that money
“It’s been 17 years since we had a five-year bill,” Blunt said. “Since 2009, there have been 37 short-term extensions of the highway bill. The longest of those 37 extensions was two years, and frankly, you just can’t have a highway plan that does much good if you’re working within a two-year window.”
He specifically pointed out provisions he helped put into the legislation that would help reopen and maintain bridges owned by counties and municipalities, not just state governments. It would also allow emergency vehicles come into the state with less bureaucratic oversight.
State Sen. Mike Kehoe, R-Jefferson City, also attended and spoke about the positives this federal legislation would bring to the state.
“A highway department needs certainty because as everybody knows MODOT plans their highway plans in the STIP (Statewide Transportation Improvement Plan) which is a five-year dedicated plan,” Kehoe said. “When you’re working off reauthorization to previous highway bills for four months or six months, the department never really has that certainty. And for policymakers here in the state, it’s good to know what our foundation is going to be and this new bill gives us that foundation.”
President Barack Obama is expected to sign the bill, despite criticisms from some Democrats that the legislation will not include health care funds for 9/11 First Responders.
