'I'm Once Again Disappointed': GOP Senator Lambasts Buttigieg Over His Department's Budget Request

7 months ago

At a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on Thursday, Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) spoke to Sec. Pete Buttigieg about the budget request for the Department of Transportation.

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00:00And with that, I'll turn it over to my friend and the Vice Chair, Senator Hyde-Smith, for

00:04her opening statement.

00:06Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I certainly appreciate that introduction and the working relationship

00:12we have.

00:13Welcome.

00:14Thank you for being here.

00:15I just want to talk a little bit about where we are, and while we're all frustrated how

00:22long it took to get the FY 24 appropriations packages through Congress signed into law,

00:27I will note that here in the Senate, we passed the T-HUD appropriations bill last November

00:33with strong bipartisan support with the help of Senator Collins, for sure, and Senator

00:39Murray, and by Senator Kennedy, no doubt.

00:44But without the leadership and the vision of Vice Chairman Collins and Chairwoman Murray,

00:51we may well have been here saddled with continuing CRs through the end of the fiscal year, which

00:57benefits no one and eliminates Congress's ability to carry out its most fundamental

01:03duties.

01:05But thank you for being here to testify again on the budget request for the Department of

01:09Transportation, which has such a direct impact on so many people in every state.

01:16But when you appeared before the subcommittee last year, the department was contending with

01:20serious safety challenges, such as the failure of the FAA notice to air mission system and

01:27the devastating derailment, as the chairman mentioned, in Ohio.

01:32Today the department is grappling with two new emergencies involving Boeing and then

01:38the collapse of the Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge.

01:42I look forward to hearing how the department is confronting each of these obstacles and

01:46prioritizing the safety of the traveling public, and as Congress contemplates how to address

01:52emergency funding needs resulting from the Baltimore Bridge collapse and other disasters,

01:58we as appropriators must not lose sight of our responsibility to provide adequate annual

02:04funding for critical programs across the department.

02:08The administration's FY25 request for the Department of Transportation totals $108.9

02:17billion, which represents a roughly $2.6 billion increase above the FY24 enacted levels.

02:27I'm once again disappointed to see that even with the proposed increase in overall funding,

02:32the request woefully underfunds or in some cases eliminates entirely programs that are

02:38priorities for this subcommittee.

02:41For example, last year the president's budget request includes $510 million for the popular

02:47consolidated rail infrastructure and safety improvements grant program.

02:52This year the funding request has been slashed by more than half to just $250 million.

02:59Additionally, the pandemic underscored the importance of a robust, resilient, and reliable

03:06American port system, so it is difficult for me to understand why the administration's

03:12FY25 funding request for the vital port infrastructure development program is shockingly 66% less

03:22than the FY24 request, reduced from $230 million to just $80 million.

03:33While the administration may cite the Infrastructure Investment Jobs Act funding for these programs

03:39as a counter to my concerns, we must recognize that the funding provided in that legislation

03:46is not perpetual, not finite, and it's not perpetual.

03:51The practice of backfilling annual appropriations with the Infrastructure Investment Jobs Act

03:57funding is simply not sustainable, and the administration has not laid out a transition

04:02plan for funding critical programs in a post-Infrastructure Investment Jobs Act environment.

04:10The Infrastructure Investment Jobs Act's off-ramp strategy is necessary to formulate a funding

04:17that strikes a balance to meet the needs of all Americans, especially those in rural communities

04:24which face unique transportation challenges.

04:28Without such a strategy, under-resourced rural areas like those across Mississippi

04:34would be put at risk.

04:37This subcommittee's commitment to addressing rural needs is epitomized by the $250 million

04:43rural bridge bundling program that was established in the FY24 T-HUD bill, directing resources

04:53to sparsely populated areas for much-needed bridge repair and rehabilitation work.

04:59Our rural communities often benefit from the RAISE grant program, so I wanted to flag some

05:04of my concerns with how the administration is proposing to fund and administer these

05:09grants.

05:11I appreciate that the administration seeks to provide $800 million for the National Infrastructure

05:17Investments, which encompasses RAISE and MEGA grants, but I'm troubled by its plan

05:23to combine these two distinct programs without clearly explaining how much funding will be

05:30allocated under each of those programs.

05:33I have also concerns about the proposal to use the TIFA funds to recover, to cover the

05:41full $800 million cost.

05:45I was pleased, however, to see that the budget request includes additional funding for the

05:49FAA to hire more air traffic controllers to manage the increased traffic in our national

05:56airspace system and to bring on more critical safety staff to help address the FAA's ongoing

06:04aircraft certification reform and oversight efforts.

06:08I also support the administration's intentions to continue fully funding the essential air

06:14service program.

06:16The essential air service program connects our nation's rural communities to the broader

06:21transportation network and benefits more modest airports like those found in Greenville, Tupelo,

06:29and Hattiesburg, Mississippi, by ensuring safe travel for customers traveling to and

06:34from the smaller markets.

06:36New businesses rarely locate in areas without dependable commercial air service, so supporting

06:42these rural airports is vital for the future economic development in these areas.

06:48To conclude, I believe that our funding decisions should be informed by fiscal responsibility

06:54and made with the American taxpayer in mind.

06:58Mr. Secretary, I look forward to hearing from you and working together in the American people

07:03to ensure that we have the safest, most reliable transportation network in the entire world.

07:09Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

'I'm Once Again Disappointed': GOP Senator Lambasts Buttigieg Over His Department's Budget Request

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