Rep. Boozman: 'Committee Passage of Highway Bill Moves Us Closer to Much Needed Repairs for Arkansas Roads'

HEADLINE: REP. BOOZMAN: 'COMMITTEE PASSAGE OF HIGHWAY BILL MOVES US CLOSER TO MUCH NEEDED REPAIRS FOR ARKANSAS ROADS

BYLINE: States News Service

DATELINE: WASHINGTON

BODY:

The office of Rep. John Boozman, R-Ark., issued the following press release:

Rep. John Boozman (R-AR) joined his colleagues on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in voting to send the Highway Bill to the House Floor for consideration.

"Transportation Committee passage of the Highway Bill moves us closer to bringing some much needed repairs for Arkansas' roads. Arkansas' share of federal funding in this bill will help our municipalities deal with the strain growth has placed on our region's infrastructure," said Rep. Boozman.

Should this legislation become law, Arkansas is will receive $2.4 billion in highway funds over the next six years. Arkansas will also receive over $116 million for the state's transit needs. Additionally, the Third District of Arkansas is also set to receive assistance for specific projects that have been earmarked in the Highway Bill.

"I cannot stress enough that the earmarks in this version of the bill are subject to change. However, with that being said, I am very pleased to see that the Committee felt these projects were worthy of funding. I will continue to work to ensure they are in the version that the president signs into law," said Boozman.

Boozman also addressed the Committee about his concerns regarding the Hours of Service rules that govern truckers. The new rules, which went into effect at the beginning of the year, changed the length of time that truckers can stay behind the wheel. However, in an attempt to make the roads safer by reducing hours truckers can be on-duty, the new rule has actually forced them to push harder to complete their workload. This makes for an unnecessary strain on truckers and creates greater driver fatigue.

"The industry is very diverse and we must recognize that operations, such as the short-haulers, are unique. We must also recognize that truck drivers provide a critical service to our nation. We should not take advantage of the drivers by penalizing them if they need a break," Boozman said during the mark-up.

Boozman authored an amendment that seeks to reform the rule by returning short-haul drivers to the old Hours of Service and by giving all drivers governed by the current rule flexibility to occasionally log-off the books for rest, a meal or other short break. Boozman offered the amendment at the mark-up, but withdrew it after Highways, Transit and Pipelines Subcommittee Chairman Tom Petri (R-WI) committed to holding hearings on this issue in the near future.

Boozman intends to continue working with the Committee to develop the best possible compromise that will grant the needed flexibility that could be included in the bill at a later date.