BAF IN THE NEWS
Politico Morning Transportation: The Transpo Debate Debate
http://www.politico.com/morningtransportation/
It's been a few weeks since Building America's Future chiefs New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell and former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger wrote to the Commission on Presidential Debates to get the typically bipartisan area of transportation into the debate on domestic policy in early October. A spokeswoman for BAF deemed the response from the commission as "receptive" and "positive." BAF plans to use its members and partners to work on the debate planners "to help ensure that infrastructure is included in the conversation."
NATIONAL NEWS
New York Times: Panama Canal’s Growth Prompts U.S. Ports to Expand
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/21/us/us-ports-seek-to-lure-big-ships-aft...
This sense that the new set of locks now being built to allow giant ships through the canal will bring riches 1,000 miles or more to the north is shared by industry and government officials along the East Coast and the Gulf of Mexico, who have been promoting multimillion- — and in some cases multibillion- — dollar port projects for years. The Obama administration has now moved to speed up the review process for developing and deepening the harbors for several of these ports, including those of New York and New Jersey; Charleston, S.C.; Savannah, Ga.; Jacksonville, Fla.; and Miami. The initiative “will help drive job growth and strengthen the economy,” President Obama said in announcing it last month.
National Journal: Easy on the Earmarks
http://transportation.nationaljournal.com/2012/08/easy-on-the-earmarks.php
The administration on Friday shined a bright light on an issue central to the transportation funding debate: earmarks. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced plans to free up $473 million in unspent infrastructure funds by letting states use the money for eligible projects that would improve transportation and create jobs. The money--unspent funds appropriated between fiscal years 2003 and 2006--will no doubt come as a pleasant surprise to many state officials whose budgets are in a vise. Only one state, Wyoming, had no unobligated funds, while Alabama had the most at $51 million.
Los Angeles Times: How to use an unspent $473 million? No surprise, ideas differ
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-obama-transportati...
The Obama administration is taking $473 million in unspent money once earmarked by lawmakers for hometown projects and distributing it to states for transportation projects — provided they spend it quickly. For various reasons, the money has sat idle for nearly a decade. Now, according to the administration, the money should be spent to put people to work. But the administration’s plan is running into opposition, most notably from a Californian: Republican Jerry Lewis, a master of pork-barrel politics who has unapologetically worked to bring home the bacon to show constituents in the Inland Empire that they were getting back some of the money they sent to Washington.
STATE NEWS
Sacramento Bee: Sacramento council to consider transit center plans
http://www.sacbee.com/2012/08/21/4742959/sacramento-council-to-consider....
Last week, they moved the train tracks. Tonight, Sacramento officials will seek the City Council's OK to convene a panel to brainstorm plans for a modern transit center and other development behind the downtown depot. The goal, city planners say, is to turn the site into a busy, transit-focused neighborhood. Cohn and other officials said they want to bring in experts sponsored by the Urban Land Institute's Rose Center to advise the city on next steps for the city-owned land between the depot and tracks. The ULI contract would cost $20,000.
Transport Politic: Honolulu’s Rail Project Back in the Crossfire This Fall
http://www.thetransportpolitic.com/2012/08/18/honolulus-rail-project-bac...
In 2008, Honolulu’s citizens approved the construction of a new high-capacity rail line that would provide quick public transportation along the city’s coastline. The $5.3-billion, 20-mile project is one of the largest in the nation, but it is backed by a steady source of local revenues and the almost definite promise of a federal New Starts capital grant that will cover about a third of costs. Moreover, it has held the support of the city’s leaders consistently since 2005, when pro-rail Mayor Mufi Hannemann entered office. The project broke ground last year.