DOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg on Wednesday said flatly that states are still able to spend their federal infrastructure dollars on highway expansions, despite a Federal Highway Administration memo saying states should prioritize fixing existing assets first.
Buttigieg's answer came during a Senate Environment and Public Works Committee hearing where Republican senators repeatedly pressed him about the memo, including suggesting it was an attempt to circumvent the will of Congress when it enacted the infrastructure law, which contains no such prohibition on the use of funds.
Senate EPW ranking member Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) in particular pressed Buttigieg over the December 2021 memo “encouraging” state DOTs to use new federal infrastructure dollars to prioritize repairs over highway expansions. She suggested the memo lifted language from House Transportation Committee Chair Peter DeFazio 's (D-Ore.) version of the surface transportation bill, which Congress ultimately declined to include in the final version.
"I’m truly troubled that a memo coming from your department has language in it from the House bill that was rejected basically verbatim," Capito said, while displaying poster boards of the memo and DeFazio's proposed legislative text that would have required states to prioritize repair projects over projects that expand car capacity.
"My understanding is that the mandate was rejected," Buttigieg said. "I understand the progress of the bill the Senate did not go forward with the requirement and so as we go forward with implementing the law we would not impose a mandate, but of course we think its a good thing."
Background: Buttigieg's defense is just the latest damage control DOT has had to perform over the memo, which progressives and climate advocates cheered but has generated significant concern among states, roadbuilders and other adjacent industries. On Wednesday, Buttigieg repeated the DOT line in response to GOP concerns that state DOTs will have ultimate say over how new infrastructure dollars are spent.
But Capito pushed back and said the document creates "winners and losers" while trying to stealthily impose DeFazio's rejected language onto states.
“Specifically, the memorandum seeks to restrict the flexibility of states and impose one-size-fits-all solutions to address the surface transportation needs of all communities," Capito said.“It discourages states from moving forward with projects that add highway capacity and instead prioritizes projects that improve existing surface transportation assets. The memorandum also, in my view, creates winners and losers among different types of projects based on their level of environmental review required by NEPA."
What's next: Buttigieg called on Congress to quickly pass an omnibus spending bill to fully implement the infrastructure law. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday that talks on an omnibus are currently at a "snag" over a disagreement on Defense Department aid for Ukraine. He said Democrats want to cut funds elsewhere to cover the increased aid while Republicans don't want to offset DoD spending. The currently temporary spending bill expires on March 11.
"I appreciate you and the ranking member mentioning the sense of urgency we have in seeing that appropriation that allows us to go full speed ahead," Buttigieg said to Capito and EPW Chair Tom Carper (D-Del.).