Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is expected to call on Congress to avoid a government shutdown to ensure “transportation safety,” as well as highlight concerns for travel and freight, in House testimony this morning.
In his submitted written testimony before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, obtained by the Washington Examiner, Buttigieg will ask Congress to pass government funding and new legislation regarding air and rail.
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A shutdown looms over Congress as lawmakers struggle to find agreement on a funding measure to fund the government beyond the Sept. 30 expiration date. The House Republican caucus is divided on a continuing resolution that would also increase border security, while the measure is likely dead on arrival in the Democratic-controlled Senate.
Buttigieg is expected to commend the House for advancing the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization, noting that the Department of Transportation has hired 2,600 air traffic controllers currently in training — meeting their goal.
According to testimony, airline cancellation rates are down 1.6%, below pre-pandemic rates, and DOT is working on new rules to protect passengers from cancellations and fees for parents sitting next to their children.
The transportation secretary is calling on Congress to show “the same bipartisan leadership you’ve shown on aviation when it comes to rail safety.”
“Freight rail safety legislation, proposed by Democrats and Republicans together after the Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine, has yet to advance,” Buttigieg’s testimony states, noting proposals to Congress from DOT to require at least two crewmembers on certain trains. He will also mention more than 6,000 route inspections currently underway where trains transporting high-hazard materials travel.
“If America is going to reach a place where 1,000 derailments per year is no longer accepted as the cost of doing business, we need new authorities to hold railroads accountable,” his testimony states.
Aside from areas of improvement, Buttigieg is expected to tout over 37,000 infrastructure projects in every state and territory.
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“We’re making people safer; we’re creating jobs and addressing transportation inequities in big cities and on rural main streets; we’re making our infrastructure more resilient against extreme weather while reducing the transportation emissions that are contributing to those issues; and we’re strengthening supply chains to keep goods moving and reduce prices,” testimony states.
As the Washington Examiner reported, committee Republicans are expected to hit Buttigieg on the Biden administration’s climate change agenda, preference for electric vehicles, and recent travel woes.
