Rep. Ellison Statement on Passage of Highway Trust Fund Fix

Statement

Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) released the following statement today after the House of Representatives passed a short-term funding patch for the Highway Trust Fund.

"I voted in favor of the short-term funding fix to the Highway Trust Fund today, but I am disappointed Republicans refuse to work with Democrats to find a long-term solution. We will be in the same situation in May 2015 if we don't consider long-term, permanent and appropriate funding options like increasing the gas tax or passing the President's GROW AMERICA Act he discussed in St. Paul in February.

"Maintaining our roads and bridges puts Americans back to work. Safe infrastructure in our state means Minnesota families can confidently go on vacation this summer and travel around the Twin Cities during the coming winter. But the American Society of Civil Engineers estimates the nation needs $3.6 trillion in total infrastructure investment by 2020 to "maintain a good state of repair.' In Minnesota, we have 1,190 structurally deficient bridges and 42% of our roads are in poor or mediocre condition.

"We all remember the terrible day in August of 2007 when the I-35W Bridge collapsed into the Mississippi, killing 13 and injuring 145 people. The best way to prevent tomorrow's tragedy is to invest in rebuilding our roads and bridges today."

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