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S. Hrg. 103-291, Pt. 4
Senate Hearings
Before the Committee on Appropriations
Y4.AP 6/2; B. HRG. 103-291/
Oepartnent of Transfortatioi mi Re.
Department of
Transportation and Related
Agencies Appropriations
Fiscal Year
1994
1 Q ^</ CONGRESS, FIRST SESSION
H.R. 2490/2750
â– "^CDOQ;
PART 4 (Pages 2437-2852)
NONDEPARTMENTAL WITNESSES
my 2 H mh
S. Hrg. 103-291, Pt. 4
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND REUT-
ED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL
YEAR 1994
HEARINGS
BEFORE A
SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE
COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED THIRD CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
ON
H.R. 2490/2750
AN ACT MAKING APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANS-
PORTATION AND RELATED AGENCIES FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING
SEPTEMBER 30, 1994, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
PART 4 (Pages 2437-2852)
Nondepartmental witnesses
Printed for the use of the Committee on Appropriations
U.S. GOVER>fMENT PRINTING OFFICE
76-693 cc WASHINGTON : 1994
For sale by the U.S. Government Printing Office
Superintendent of Documents, Congressional Sales Office, Washington, DC 20402
ISBN 0-16-043973-6
COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
ROBERT C. BYRD, West \rirginia, Chairman
DANIEL K. INOUYE. Hawaii
ERNEST F. ROLLINGS. South CaroUna
J. BENNETT JOHNSTON. Louisiana
PATRICK J. LEAHY. Vermont
JIM SASSER, Tennessee
DENNIS DeCONCINI, Arizona
DALE BUMPERS, Arkansas
FRANK R. LAUTENBERG. New Jersey
TOM HARKIN, Iowa
BARBARA A MIKLTLSKI, MaryUnd
HARRY REID, Nevada
J. ROBERT KERREY, Nebraska
HERB KOHL, Wisconsin
PATTY MURRAY, Washington
DIANNE FEINSTEIN, California
MARK O. HATFIELD, Oregon
TED STEVENS, Alaska
THAD COCHRAN. Mississippi
ALFONSE M. I^AMATO, New York
ARLEN SPECTER, Pennsylvania
PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico
DON NICKLES, Oklahoma
PHIL GRAMM, Texas
CHRISTOPHER S. BOND, Missouri
SLADE GORTON, Washington
MITCH McCONNELL, Kentucky
CONNIE MACK, Florida
CONRAD BURNS, Montana
James H. English, Staff Director
Mary S. Dewald, Chief Clerk
J. Keith Kennedy, Minority Staff Director
Subcommittee on Transportation and Related Agencies
FRANK R. LAUTENBERG, New Jersey, Chairman
ROBERT C. BYRD, West \rirginia ALFONSE M. I^AMATO. New York
TOM HARKIN. Iowa PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico
JIM SASSER. Tennessee MARK O. HATFIELD, Oregon
BARBARA A MIKULSKI. Maryland ARLEN SPECTER. Pennsylvania
Professional Staff
Patrick J. McCann
Peter Rogoff
Anne M. Miano (Minority)
Administrative Support
Joyce C. Rose
OD
CONTENTS
National Organizations
Page
America's Coalition for Transit NOW 2438
American Public Transit Association 2442
American Trucking Associations, Inc 2448
American Association of Airport Executives and the Airports Council Inter-
national-North America 2456
Center for Marine Conservation 2463
Community Transportation Association of America 2472
National Air Transportation Association 2475
National Association of Railroad Passengers 2488
National Association of State Boating Law Administrators 2491
National Easter Seal Society 2494
Reserve Officers Association of the United States 2497
Individual Projects, Requests by Cities and States
Advanced Navigation and Positioning Corp., Hood River, OR 2503
Atlanta, GA: Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority [MARTA] 2506
Chicago, IL:
Department of Aviation 2520
Central Area Circulation F*roject 2523
Metra Commuter Rail 2540
Clark Covmty, NV: Regional Transportation Commission 2569
Dallas, TX:
Dallas Area Rapid Transit Authority 2573
Dallas-Fort Worth Railtran 2587
Denver, CO:
23rd Street Viaduct Replacement Project 2590
Colorado Department of Transportation 2592
Dowling College, Oakdale, NY 2599
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University 2607
Fort Berthold Indian Reservation 2621
Georgetown University 2625
Georgia Department of Transportation 2627
Illinois Department of Transportation 2699
Indianapolis, IN: Citizens for Appropriate Rural Rioads [CARR] 2709
Inter American University of Puerto Rico 2746
Jacksonville, FL: Jacksonville Transportation Authority 2750
Los Angeles, CA:
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority 2756
Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce 2763
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority 2766
Memphis, TN: Memphis Area Transit Authority 2767
Metropolitan Dade County, FL 2772
New Orleans, LA: Regional Transit Authority 2784
Orlando, FL:
Greater Orlando Aviation Authority 2793
The OSCAR Project 2819
Pittsburgh, PA: Port Authority of Allegheny County 2823
Seminole, Osceola, and Orange Counties, FL 2836
Spaceport Florida Authority 2837
St. Louis, MO: Metro Link Rail Project 2842
University of North Dakota 2844
(III)
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND RE-
LATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR
FISCAL YEAR 1994
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations,
Washington, DC.
NONDEPARTMENTAL WITNESSES
The following testimonies were received by the Subcommittee on
Transportation and Related Agencies for inclusion in the record.
The submitted materials relate to the fiscal year 1994 budget re-
quest.
The subcommittee requested that public witnesses provide writ-
ten testimony because, given the Senate schedule and the number
of subcommittee hearings with Department witnesses, there was
not enough time to schedule hearings for nondepartmental wit-
nesses.
(2437)
2438
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
AMERICA'S COALITION FOR TRANSIT NOW
STATEMENT OF ROBERT CLARKE BROWN, SENIOR VICE
PRESIDENT, LEHMAN BROTHERS, PUBLIC FINANCE
Mr. Chairman, thank you for this opportunity to submit
testimony as an outside witness. My name is Robert Clarke Brown.
I am a Senior Vice President of Lehman Brothers' transportation
group, which is part of the Firm's public finance investment
banking department. Lehman Brothers provides investment banking
and financial advisory services to public agencies throughout the
United States, particularly those engaged in financing
transportation and other infrastructure facilities. We are one of
the 179 firms and organizations that are members of America's
Coalition for Transit NOW.
Lehman Brothers is pleased to be an active partner in the
Transit NOW Coalition which includes business and environmental
interests, health care and disability groups, financial
institutions and a broad range of other interests. What brings us
together in this Coalition is a belief that public transit offers
opportunities for improving the economy, increasing the mobility
and productivity of this nation's workforce, and has a positive
impact on the environment and health care costs.
Transit NOW has been active in reaching out to those not
ordinarily associated with mass transit to energize support for the
passage and effective implementation of the Intermodal Surface
Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) , the transit pass provisions
that were contained in last year's Comprehensive Energy Policy Act,
as well as budget and appropriations initiatives that will increase
funding for transit programs. A complete listing of Transit NOW
members is being provided for the record with this statement.
Transit NOW enthusiastically supports the President's FY 1994
budget request of $4.6 billion in funding for the Federal Transit
Administration. The budget document notes that "this funding level
2439
will provide a stable resource for needed capital investment at
transit systems of all sizes and for operating assistance." We
share that view. As someone familiar with investment, I can tell
you that a stable source of funding is critical to a sound, future-
oriented infrastructure policy.
The $4.6 billion proposed for FTA funding will assist in the
replacement of over-age transit vehicles, allow investments to be
made in capital improvements and necessary support facilities, and
permit the operators of rail transit systems to continue to upgrade
and modernize their systems. Importantly, this level of funding
will also allow transit operators to implement transit related
provisions contained in the Americans with Disabilities Act and the
Clean Air Act. I should point out, however, that the
Administration has not requested an increase in operating
assistance caps. As you are aware, these caps have not increased
in 10 years. Operating assistance is important for meeting the new
requirements for implementation of the Americans with Disabilities
Act (ADA) as well as new drug and alcohol testing provisions.
While setting important goals, these unfunded mandates may cause a
serious strain on the budgets of transit systems throughout the
country.
This request makes significant strides toward the realization
of flexible and increased funding goals set out under the
Intermodal Surface Transportation and Efficiency Act (ISTEA) .
Transit NOW considers ISTEA the single most important piece of
transportation legislation since the Urban Mass Transportation Act
was signed into law more than 25 years ago, with the exception, of
course, being your FY 1994 appropriations bill. The Coalition's
principal goal is to work toward full funding of ISTEA if not for
FY 1994, certainly for FY 1995. It is Transit NOW's view that the
funding levels set out in ISTEA more accurately reflect true
transit needs.
President Clinton's proposal is in sharp contrast to the 12
previous years' budget requests, which have been significantly
2440
below the level of actual Congressional appropriation action.
Mr. Chairman, I am aware that this Subcommittee has strongly
supported transit funding in the past. I realize, however, that
you face difficult resource allocation decisions among the various
competing needs within the jurisdiction of your bill. Transit NOW
believes that your strong support for transit funding is necessary
and warranted. We are willing to work on your behalf for increased
transit funding by developing support from other Members of the
Senate, Members of the House, and the public for enthusiastic
support of your bill and the $4.6 billion funding request for
transit.
Thank you for this opportunity to testify in support of the FY
1994 budget request for the Federal Transit Association.
Transit NOW Members
As or May 20. 1993
ABB Traction Inc.
A.B.P. Inc.
ACUSON
Aclna Insurance Company
Alliance of American Insurers
Alliance for a Paving Moratorium
Alliance lo Save Energy
Amalgamated Transit Union, AFL-CIO
American Association on Mental
Retardation
American Chamber of Commerce
Executives
American Council of the Blind
American Consulting Engineers Council
American Institute Of Architects
American Insurance Association
American Lung Association
American Pedestrian Association
American Planning Association
American Public Health Association
American Public Transit Association
Amphion Environmental, Inc.
Angeles Corporation
Association for Commuter Transportation
Association for Public Transportation, Inc.
AsscKiation for Retarded Citizens of the
United Stales
ACORN-Association of Community
Organizations for Reform Now
Atlanta Chamber of Commerce
Atlantic Track and Turnout Co.
AVX Corporation
Barton-Aschman Associates, Inc.
Bay Area Council
Bear Stearns & Co.
Building Owners and Management
Association International
Cartwright & Goodwin, Inc.
Catholic Golden Age
Central Hudson Gas & Electric
Corporation
Chase Securities, Inc.
Chemical Securities, Inc.
Chicago A.s.socialion of Commerce
and Industry
Child Welfare League of America
Coach and Car Equipment
Corporation
Community Transportation
Association of America
Computer & Communication
Industry Association
Consoer, Townsend & As.sociates
Conservation Foundation of DuPage
County
Consumer Federation of America
Dames & Moore
Daniel, Mann, Johnson &
Mendenhall
De Lcuw, Cathcr & Company
Dean Witter Reynolds Inc.
Del-Jen Inc.
Deloittc & Touche
Delon Hampton & Associates
Detroit Diesel Corporation
The Detroit Edison Company
Dillon, Read & Co., Inc.
2441
Disability Rights Education and
Defense Fund
Dumoni Electrical Inc.
Edison Electric Institute
Ehrlich Bobcr & Co., Inc.
Electrack Division of
EMJ/McFarland-Johnson
Engineers, Inc.
Epilepsy Foundation of America
Fluor Daniel, Inc.
Frederick R. Harris, Inc.
The First Boston Corporation
The Flrible Corporation
Gannett Fleming, Inc.
GenCorp Polymer Products
General Electric
Giggs & Hill, Inc.
Goldman, Sachs & Co.
Goodwill Industries of America, Inc.
Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce
Greater Philadelphia First Corporation
Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc.
High Speed Rail Association
Hewlett-Packard
Howard, Needles, Tammen & Bergendoff
Hughes Aircraft Company
ICF Kaiser Engineers, Inc.
Indiana Transportation Association
Indianapolis Power & Light Company
Industrial Unions Department, AFL-CIO
Institute for Transportation & Development Policy
Institute for Urban Transportation
JHK & Associates, Inc.
J. P. Morgan Securities
J.W. Leas & Associates
The Keith Companies
Kathcrinc McGuinness & Associates, Inc.
KPMG Peat Marwick
La7ard Freres & Co.
Lebcnthal & Co., Inc.
Lomarado Group
LS Transit Systems, Inc.
Luminator, A MARK IV INDUSTRIES Company
Manufacturers Hanover Securities Corporation
Marin Rainbow Coalition
Marine Midland Banks, Inc
Marlowe & Company
Mental Health Law Project
Merrill Lynch Capital Markets
Metropolitan Planning Council of Chicago
Midwest Bus Rebuilders, Corp.
Morgan Stanley & Co., Inc
Morrison Knudsen Corporation
M.R. Beal & Company
National As.sociation of Area Agencies on Aging
National Association of Counties
National Association of Development Disabilities
Councils
National Association of Families Caring for Elders
National Association of Independent Insurers
National Association of Industrial and Office Parks
National Association of Private Residential
Resources
National Association of Protection and Advocacy
Systems
National Association of Transit Consumer
Organizations
National Association of Meal Programs
National Association of Nutrition and Aging Service
Programs
National Association of Railroad Passengers
National Association of Regional Councils
National Consumers League
National Council of Senior Citizens
National Council on the Aging
National Council on Independent Living
National Easter Seal Society
National Growth Management Leadership Project
National Industries for the Severely Handicapped
National Interstate Insurance Agency, Inc
National Jobs with Peace Campaign
National League of Cities
National Multiple Sclerosis Society
National Rural Electric Cooperative Association
National Urban Coalition
National Urban League
National Women's Political Caucus
The Nettleship Group
New Flyer Industries, Ltd.
New York Building Congress
New York Chamber of Commerce and Industry
New York City Partnership
Older Women's League
Paine Webber Incorporated
Paralyzed Veterans of America
Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, Inc.
Penn-Soft Services, Inc
Philadelphia electric Company
Portland General Corporation
Portland Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce
The Promus Companies
Public Financial Management, Inc.
Pryor, McClendon, Counts, & Co., Inc.
Read Communications
Renew America
Ricon Corporation
Rides for Bay Area Commuters
R. L. Banks & Associates, Inc
Robin.son & Associates
Rocky Mountain Institute
Russell's Printing and Publishing
Shearson Lehman Brothers
Sierra Club
Simon & Company, Inc
Spina Bifida Association of America
Stone & Webster Engineering Corporation
The Stride Rile Corporation
Summit Communications
Transportation Communications Union, AFL-CIO
Transport Workers Union, AFL-CIO
Transportation Manufacturing Corporation
Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO
United Auto Workers, AFL-CIO
United Cerebral Palsy Association.^, Inc.
United Transportation Union, AFL-CIO
United States Conference of Mayors
Universal Coach Parts, Inc
Urban Engineers
Vapor Corporation
Weslin Consulting Services, Inc
Western Insurance Information Services
Wisconsin Power and Light Company
WR Lazard Laidlaw & Mead, Inc
2442
STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN PUBLIC TRANSIT ASSOCIATION
INTRODUCTION
Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, the American Public Transit
Association (APIA) appreciates the opportunity to testify on the Transportation and
Related Agencies Appropriations Act for FY 1994.
We thank the members of this subcommittee for their support of the President's
Economic Stimulus proposal, which would have provided an additional $752 million in
much needed FY 1993 supplemental funding for transit.
However, we now look to FY 1994 - and beyond - for increased federal investment in
our network of local public transit providers. Spending on public transit service and
facilities can build on the federal capital investment which has already been made in
transit systems across the nation and produce a wealth of benefits. Transit can help to
reduce congestion (saving people time), inaease mobility for all Americans (especially
people with disabilities, the elderly, and the poor), create jobs, and help us compete
internationally. For the sake of future generations we need to make our world more
liveable by improving the air we breathe, conserving finite energy resources, and
rebuilding our basic infrastructure. Quality transit can help achieve these goals by
providing a real alternative to the energy consumption and pollution produced by single
occupancy automobile use.
We urge the Congress to take advantage of the opportunity for change which the new
Administration has presented. The President's budget recommends a new set of priorities
which includes increased investment in transit. Funding the transit program at the levels
proposed by the President is the first step toward rebuilding our cities. Better
maintenance of old rail systems and timely replacement of aging bus fleets will save
money for txjth the federal government and transit authorities over the long run.
Adequate, stable, and predictable funding of both the formula and major capital transit
programs is essential to transit service across the nation. Inaeased funding for the
transit formula program is badly needed after a 14% cut in the program in FY 1993.
In addition to the recommendations included in the budget, we request that Congress
consider increased funding for transit operating assistance. Transit agencies cannot
purchase more buses and inaease rail service if they cannot afford to operate such
services. Operating aid has remained flat or declined in every year since 1980. Beyond
the erosion in purchasing power due to inflation, transit operators are now facing higher
operating costs attributable to the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Clean Air Act, and
federal requirements for drug and alcohol testing. If transit agencies are required to pay
the proposed Btu tax, yet another operating cost - fuel - will increase by an estimated
8% to 10%. The only way many transit agencies can afford to pay for these increased
costs is by raising fares and reducing service. In many cases, these fare increases and
service cuts are counterproductive because riders leave the system and revenues decline.
APTA SUPPORTS PROPOSAL TO FUND TRANSIT AT $4.6 BILUON
Although APTA advocates full funding of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency
Act (ISTEA) in FY 1994, the transit industry was pleased that the President recommended
transit funding of $4.6 billion in FY 1994. We are, however, concerned by the fact that the
Administration budget exceeds the outlay limitations established in the 1990 Budget
Enforcement Act.
2443
We urge the members of this subcommittee to maintain the priority which the President's
budget proposal places on transit. Under the Administration proposal, transit would
receive an increase of $803 million, or 21.1%, more than the 1993 appropriated level. We
view this as a positive step toward full funding of the transit program authorized under the
ISTEA.
Within the transit program, the Administration requested a 43.2% increase in formula
funding. The budget recommended an increase of $733.4 million in Section 9, 16(b), and
18 formula funds, for a total formula program of $2,433.7 million in FY 1994. It also
recommended adding $21.2 million in Section 8 planning to the formula program.
We urge the Subcommittee to increase funding for these programs as recommended in
the budget for a number of reasons. Because formula funding was reduced by more
than 14% last year, an increase this year would help to pay for purchases and
maintenance that had to be delayed, f^any medium and smaller sized areas rely almost
exclusively on the federal formula program to meet system costs which are not met by
fares or local funding, f^any of those operators who depend primarily on the formula
program also felt that increases in the major capital program came at the expense of the
formula program. In response to their concerns, APIA adopted a policy which supports
the President's emphasis on increased formula funding and which calls for a distribution
between formula funding and Section 3 capital funding that adheres to the ISTEA
priorities. The APTA policy calls for $1.38 in Section 9 and 18 formula funding for every
$1 in Section 3 capital funding, which is the ratio established in ISTEA at fully authorized
levels.
APTA also supports the proposed $46.6 million increase recommended for the Section
3 major capital investment program in FY 1994. Clearly the demand for new rail starts
and extensions, major bus purchases, and rail modernization far exceed funding available
for such purposes.
INCREASED FUNDING OF OPERATING ASSISTANCE IS ESSENTIAL
Day-to-day maintenance and operations require a stable and reliable financial
commitment. Full funding of the authorized operating limit would help to retain current
jobs, support new jobs, and permit service expansion. Operating assistance in FY 1993
is $226 million less than the authorized limit of $1,028 billion. Utilization of the authorized
operating limit will not increase federal expenditures in the long run, but it will help to avert
layoffs, pay for maintenance of vehicles, equipment, and trackage, and prevent reductions
in bus and train service. Current formula apportionments for smaller urbanized areas in
24 states do not even equal operating limitations for individual localities. Because all
federal funds for rural transit operators can be used for operating, their operating aid was
reduced by over 14% in FY 1993.
Since Federal, State, and local governments have already made a huge capital investment
in the transit infrastructure, it is important that we properly maintain those capital assets.
These substantial assets include bus and rail rolling stock, rail trackage, signals, and
related equipment, and garages and other maintenance equipment. If we are to make
increased investment in facilities we must also have the funds to operate and maintain the
additional buses and trains so the benefits of increased transit ridership can be realized.
Maintenance and operation of the nation's transit systems costs some $16.8 billion per
year, less than six percent of which now comes from the federal government.
Operating these systems through 1997 will cost nearly $75 billion in current dollars. As
transit systems offer both expanded and new services to meet new passenger demand,
increased support for operations, as well as capital, will be required.
2444
The Transit Safety, Service, and Standards Fund
APIA supports a recent proposal to dedicate increases in federal operating aid above the
current level to costs associated with federal mandates under the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA), the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 (CAA), and drug and
alcohol testing requirements. The creation of a "Transit Safety, Service, and Standards
Fund' is intended to make additional federal assistance available to help offset the new
costs faced by all transit grant recipients.
The "Safety" aspect of this proposal is designed to specifically address the new drug and
alcohol testing requirements which are expected to cost transit operators between $20
to $25 million per year. The "Service" aspect would be used to support the operational
expenses required to implement new ADA service requirements, which are estimated to
exceed $349 million annually, according to DOT. Lastly, the "Standards" aspect would
address the operational needs for installing and maintaining the equipment required to