U.S. Senate
Basics
Senate Climate Bill Delayed for Second Time
Underscoring the growing intensity of the message war over climate change, Senate environment committee chairman Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) said in a joint statement this afternoon that they would delay the unveiling of their carbon-emissions legislation until late September:
August 31, 2009
Senator Dukakis? What Kennedy’s Loss Could Mean for Transport Policy
As the nation mourns the loss of Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA), a discussion has begun over how to fill his outsized shoes, both in Massachusetts' Senate seat and atop the Senate health committee -- two vacancies that could have notable consequences for transportation policy-making.
August 31, 2009
Carper: Climate Bill Must Focus on Transport, Not Just Power Plants
Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE), chief sponsor of a plan to give green transportation 10 percent of the emissions allowances in the upcoming climate change bill, took to the pages of his home-state newspaper yesterday with an op-ed that begins with a pithy description of "the problem":
August 19, 2009
Oil Industry Tears Page from Health Care Playbook to Battle Climate Bill
Thanks to conservative groups that have worked for months to stoke false rumors about Congress' health care effort, a wave of negative "town hall" stories is now dominating the media -- and inspiring the oil industry to work up a similar campaign of its own against the climate change bill.
August 14, 2009
Report: Boxer ‘Sympathetic to’ Backers of More Climate Money for Transit
As Barbara Boxer (D-CA) works on her upcoming climate change bill, the Senate environment committee chairman is "definitely looking at" a plan to give green transport 10 percent of the revenue generated from carbon emissions caps, according to a new report from BNA's Transportation Watch.
August 14, 2009
Senate’s New DOT Spending Bill Eases One Transit Funding Barrier
During the lengthy process of pursuing a "New Starts" funding agreement with the U.S. DOT, local transit officials are often at the mercy of cost-benefit calculations that have failed to keep pace with evolutions in transport planning. But one aspect of that slog could soon change, thanks to Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA).
August 11, 2009
The Senate’s ‘Clunkers’ Vote: Who Crossed Party Lines? (UPDATED)
The "cash for clunkers" car trade-in rebates are alive and well today after an evening Senate vote to give the taxpayer-subsidized program $2 billion -- money that was supposed to go to clean-energy loans and will almost certainly be replaced by new spending.
August 7, 2009
Transit Union Apologizes to Senate After Campaign-Finance Flap
The United Transportation Union (UTU) is moving quickly to smooth over relations with the Senate Commerce Committee after sparking bipartisan ire with a claim that a former UTU counsel won a presidential nomination thanks in part to the union's political contributions.
August 6, 2009
The Perils of Taking Transit Advice From an Alabama Senator
During yesterday's Senate Banking Committee hearing on transit's funding needs, the most emotional testimony came from Washington D.C.'s Metro chief, John Catoe -- who, as the Washington Post reported, delivered an abject plea for federal aid to keep his system running safely.
August 5, 2009
Following ‘Cash for Clunkers’ with ‘Riches for Rail’
Robert Menendez (D-NJ), a senior member of the Senate Banking Committee, began his hearing on transit today by displaying the above cartoon by Pulitzer prize-winner Tom Toles. The senator's message parallels Toles': In a world where the auto industry can get $2 billion more in one week, what's to be done about rail's $50 billion backlog?
August 4, 2009