Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

Floor Speech

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Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Emergency Interstate Bridge Safety Fund Act, cosponsored by my friend and colleague from Kentucky, Senator PAUL. This bill seeks to authorize additional funding for our Nation's critical transportation infrastructure through spending offsets provided by the repeal of the antiquated Davis-Bacon Act. Last year, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that over 10 years, repealing the Davis-Bacon Act would save the Federal Government some $13 billion.

Kentucky is home to a number of critical interstate bridges that are in need of replacement, including the Brent Spence Bridge in Northern Kentucky, the I-65 bridge in Louisville, and an I-69 bridge in Henderson. This bill seeks to create a fund to help advance these very types of interstate bridge projects without raising taxes, adding to the deficit, or by authorizing tolling. Federal funding saved through the repeal of the Davis-Bacon Act could be much better spent building a number of interstate bridges that are sorely needed in Kentucky and communities across America. I call on my Senate colleagues to support this measure to invest in our Nation's critical transportation infrastructure, on which American commerce depends.

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