Senate

DRIVE Act could step up Complete Streets implementation

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Indy Mass Ave credit Ian FreimuthThe Cultural Trail in Indianapolis, IN exemplifies design flexibility in creating streets that are safe and inviting for walking, bicycling, and driving. Photo by Ian Freimuth.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee unanimously approved its draft six-year bill, the DRIVE Act, this week. Included in the bill are several provisions that would provide the long-term stability that states, regions, and local communities need to plan and build good projects and offers important steps forward for safe, multimodal streets.

Complete Streets

Senate committee votes "yes" on financing for transit-oriented development

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Today, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation unanimously approved the Railroad Reform, Enhancement, and Efficiency Act (S. 1626). The bill expands the capabilities of the Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing (RRIF), a $30 billion loan program to provide needed financing for transit-oriented development infrastructure and development projects near passenger rail stations.

LOCUS

Transit-oriented development financing included in senate transportation reauthorization bill

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Today, the Senate Environment & Public Works Committee unanimously approved its six-year, $275 billion transportation reauthorization bill, the Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy (DRIVE) Act. LOCUS Director Christopher Coes made the following statement: “The Senate took an important first step towards passing vital transportation and infrastructure legislation that will increase private … Continued

LOCUS

Senate Appropriations Committee Marks Up FY15 THUD Bill

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Yesterday, the Senate FY15 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) appropriations bill passed by the Senate Appropriations Committee by a 29-1 vote. The bill proposes funding levels for the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Department of Transportation (DOT) and other related agencies for fiscal year 2015.

This comes on the heels of the House Appropriations Committee passing their version last month. Overall, the Senate bill would provide $54.4 billion in discretionary budget authority for THUD agencies, as opposed to the $52 billion from the House bill. Despite the funding differences between the two bills, the final funding decisions will likely be determined in an omnibus appropriations package later this year.

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LOCUS Applauds Inclusion of TOD Financing in Draft Senate Transportation Bill

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Yesterday, Senate EPW Chairman Barbara Boxer (CA) and Ranking Member David Vitter (LA) released a draft bipartisan six-year, transportation reauthorization.

For the first time, the bill includes a transit-oriented development (TOD) financing provision that LOCUS has strongly supported. As proposed, the TOD financing provisions provide local communities the tools needed to leverage greater private sector investment and economic development around public transportation through the highly successful TIFIA program.

LOCUS

New Senate bill would make America’s streets safer and more accessible

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Kailua, HIStudents in Kailua, HI, walk along a street with Complete Streets features. A new bill in the Senate would require Complete Streets considerations for federal projects. Photo via Charlier Associates.

Whether you walk, bike, drive or take transit, Complete Streets policies help make sure you travel safely and conveniently, and a new bill introduced in the U.S. Senate would encourage every community in the country to use these strategies.

On Friday, Senators Mark Begich (D-AK) and Brian Schatz (D-HI) introduced the Safe Streets Act of 2014 (S. 2004), which would require all new federally-funded transportation projects use a Complete Streets approach to planning, designing and building roads to accommodate the safety and convenience of all users.

Complete Streets

Congressional testimony on brownfields highlights economic opportunities of redevelopment

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Geoff Anderson

Smart Growth America President and CEO Geoff Anderson testified before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee last week at a hearing titled “Cleaning Up and Restoring Communities for Economic Revitalization.” Joining him were Mathy Stanislaus, Assistant Administrator at the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Honorable Debbie O’Malley, Bernalillo County Commissioner from New Mexico, and Dr. Kendra Kenyon, President of the Idaho Council of Governments.

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Geoff Anderson to testify before Congress today in favor of a crucial tool for redeveloping contaminated and abandoned land

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Yards Park in Washington, DC was built on the site of a former brownfield. Photo via Flickr.

Geoff Anderson, President and CEO of Smart Growth America, will testify before Congress this afternoon in favor of the BUILD Act, a bipartisan plan for helping communities clean up old brownfields (polluted former industrial sites) and abandoned land, and return them to productive use for communities across the country.

The testimony will be before the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee at 2:00 PM today, as part of a hearing titled “Cleaning Up and Restoring Communities for Economic Revitalization.” The hearing will likely be viewable online as a stream. for a link on the Committee’s website later this afternoon.

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Geoff Anderson to testify before Senate EPW committee on brownfields and the BUILD Act

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Smart Growth America President and CEO Geoff Anderson will testify before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works next week to discuss the Brownfields Utilization, Investment, and Local Development (BUILD) Act.

If passed, the bill would help communities across the country clean up contaminated and abandoned land and put it back into productive use.

“The BUILD Act is a win for everyone—Congress, local governments, business owners and taxpayers,” said Anderson in March, when the bill was introduced. “Brownfields restoration drives economic growth while giving local governments the flexibility to pursue the projects they need the most. Transforming a community’s financial sinkhole into a new business or residential building is a no-brainer.”

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Video: Senator Inhofe on why he supports the BUILD Act of 2013

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Smart Growth America’s National Brownfields Coalition hosted a breakfast at the 2013 Brownfields Conference that brought together more than 120 members and guests working on federal brownfields issues.

To open the event, Senator Jim Inhofe (R-OK) welcomed guests with a video message about the importance of  brownfields redevelopment and its success across the country. Senator Inhofe is a lead sponsor of the BUILD Act, a bill in Congress that would help communities turn abandoned land back into vibrant spaces by reauthorizing the federal Brownfields program.

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