WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito stated that progress on drafting the Senate version of the surface transportation reauthorization bill has not advanced. She is the chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, one of four Senate committees that share jurisdiction over the bill.

Current federal authorization for surface transportation programs will expire on Sept. 30, 2026. Capito said, "We're negotiating, and we have three other committees that have to negotiate their portions."

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, ranking member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, stated that Republican leadership has not established a total funding limit for the Senate surface transportation bill. Whitehouse said, "You want there to be a topline that all the committees have to come in under, and that topline has not been proposed yet by the Republican leadership." He stated that the Senate Commerce, Finance, and Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs committees have not yet begun working on the bill.

Whitehouse also stated that passing the surface transportation bill before the Sept. 30 deadline depends on the actions of the Republican majority. He said, "There are several steps that need to be taken by the majority in order to get that moving in three of the four committees and at the leadership level, and when they do, I think we're ready to negotiate." Capito stated that she serves on the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. Capito said, "It can get done by then, but we'll have alternatives if it doesn't."

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved a five-year surface transportation reauthorization bill by a vote of 62 to 2. A rail safety amendment was attached to the House bill during committee markup. The House Committee on Ways and Means has not yet reviewed the bill. The proposed surface transportation bill would authorize approximately $580 billion for highway and rail programs through fiscal year 2031.