CONGRESS BATTLES OVER SUCCESSOR TO ISTEA

This article discusses the reauthorization of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) of 1991. The 1991 law will expire on September 30, 1997. This six-year funding law made dramatic changes in the way the federal government dealt with transportation policy. It recognized for the first time that the components of the nation's transportation infrastructure truly function as a system. Now Congress is involved in an intense battle over ISTEA's successor. The issue has become entangled in the fiscal year 1998 budget. The potential proposals to succeed ISTEA are outlined, including President Clinton's National Economic Crossroads Transportation Efficiency Act of 1997 (NEXTEA). This bill proposes to invest more than $174 billion during the next six years to maintain and improve the nation's highway, transit, and rail system, and to enhance safety. A brief description of the bill is provided. Because there are many issues to resolve it is currently impossible to accurately predict when a successor to ISTEA will reach the president's desk for approval.