Recent Streetsblog NYC posts about Federal Funding

The Gas Tax: A Trip Back in Legislative Time

By Elana Schor | Apr 15, 2010 | No Comments

As Tax Day prompts a rush of political rallies and media coverage, it’s worth looking back at the history of the federal levy that helps pay for transportation projects: the gas tax. The late Sen. Jesse Helms (R-NC) in 1982, when he battled his own party’s attempts to raise the gas tax. (Photo: TIME) Most […]

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Would the New Senate Fuel Tax Deal a Death Blow to the Transport Bill?

By Elana Schor | Apr 6, 2010 | No Comments

Eight Democrats yesterday joined nearly the entire transportation universe, from road-builders to transit advocates, to warn the three Senate authors of a new climate bill against raising gas taxes without using the money for infrastructure. Their message, translated from the often impenetrable language of Washington: Imposing new fuel fees that are not routed to transport […]

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8 Senate Dems Join Industry in a Gas-Tax Warning to Climate Bill’s Authors

By Elana Schor | Apr 6, 2010 | No Comments

As Sens. John Kerry (D-MA), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), and Joseph Lieberman (I-CT) prepare to unveil a new climate change measure that includes a tax on motor fuels, eight of their colleagues are urging the trio not to forget local transportation planning — and warning that any new gas tax should be used to help pay […]

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New Survey: 84% of Transit Agencies Facing Fare Hikes, Service Cuts

By Elana Schor | Apr 2, 2010 | No Comments

Budget shortfalls exacerbated by the lingering recession have forced 84 percent of local transit agencies to hike fares, cut service, or begin considering one or both of those options since the beginning of 2009, according to a report released yesterday by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA). (Chart: APTA) APTA’s bleak survey reflects data from […]

Rev. Jackson Joins Labor, Enviro Groups in Call for Transit Funding

By Noah Kazis | Apr 1, 2010 | 6 Comments

At a rally yesterday headlined by Rev. Jesse Jackson, a new coalition of labor unions and environmental organizations stood together to demand more funding for transit agencies across the country. With service cuts afflicting bus and train riders in dozens of major cities, the "Keep America Moving" coalition is focused on securing funds to maintain […]

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Could Gas-Tax Bonds Pay For the Next Federal Transportation Bill?

By Elana Schor | Apr 1, 2010 | No Comments

House infrastructure committee chairman Jim Oberstar (D-MN), facing steep political odds in his push to pass a new six-year federal transportation bill this year, has begun to pitch an outside-the-box solution to the financing shortfall that is still stalling congressional action: Treasury bonds. (Photo: Pop and Politics) Oberstar’s proposal would plug the hole in anticipated […]

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