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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR 1994 j,v:mv-:<KxV!. Y4.AP 6/1:168/4/994/ PT.3 Depirtnent of TriAsportation and Re.. JNGS .4«J BEFORE A SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED THIRD CONGRESS FIRST SESSION SUBCOMMITTEE ON THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS BOB CARR, Michigan, Chairman RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois FRANK R. WOLF, Virginia MARTIN OLAV SABO, Minnesota TOM DeLAY, Texas DAVID E. PRICE, North Carolina RALPH REGULA, Ohio RONALD D. COLEMAN, Texas THOMAS M. FOGLIETTA, Pennsylvania Delacroix Davis III, Richard E. Efford, Cheryl L. Smith, and Linda J. Muir, Subcommittee Staff PART 3 DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION: p^^^ Coast Guard 713 Office of the Inspector General 297 Office ofthe Secretary 505 Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation 153 Secretary of Transportation i 1 RELATED AGENCIES: Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board .^.^i 255 Panama Canal Commission 187 Printed for the use of the,C,oftmimHJi2tKttteeie|^jo)nn AApppprroopprriiaattiioonnss i^ DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND REUTED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR 1994 HEARINGS BEFORE A SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED THIRD CONGRESS FIRST SESSION SUBCOMMITTEE ON THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS BOB CARR, Michigan, Chairman RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois FRANK R. WOLF, Virginia MARTIN OLAV SABO, Minnesota TOM DeLAY, Texas DAVID E. PRICE, North Carolina RALPH REGULA, Ohio RONALD D. COLEMAN, Texas THOMAS M. FOGLIETTA, Pennsylvania Delacroix Davis III, Richard E. Efford, Cheryl L. Smith, and Linda J. Muir, Subcommittee Staff PART 3 DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION: Page Coast Guard 713 Office of the Inspector General 297 Office of the Secretary 505 Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation 153 Secretary ofTransportation 1 RELATED AGENCIES: Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board 255 Panama Canal Commission 187 Printed for the use of the Committee on Appropriations U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 67-709O WASHINGTON 1993 : ForsalebytheU.S.GovernmentPrintingOffice SuperintendentofDocuments,CongressionalSalesOffice,Washington,DC 20402 ISBN 0-16-041064-9 COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS WILLIAM H. NATCHER, Kentucky, Chairman JAMIE L. WHITTEN, Mississippi, JOSEPH M. McDADE, Pennsylvania Vice Chairman JOHN T. MYERS, Indiana NEAL SMITH, Iowa C. W. BILL YOUNG, Florida SIDNEY R. YATES, Illinois RALPH REGULA, Ohio DAVID R. OBEY, Wisconsin BOB LIVINGSTON, Louisiana LOUIS STOKES, Ohio JERRY LEWIS, California TOM BEVILL, Alabama JOHN EDWARD PORTER, Illinois JOHN P. MURTHA, Pennsylvania HAROLD ROGERS, Kentucky CHARLES WILSON, Texas JOE SKEEN, New Mexico NORMAN D. DICKS, Washington FRANK R. WOLF, Virginia MARTIN OLAV SABO, Minnesota TOM DeLAY, Texas JULIAN C. DIXON, California JIM KOLBE, Arizona VIC FAZIO, California DEAN A. GALLO, New Jersey W. G. (BILL) HEFNER, North Carolina BARBARA F. VUCANOVICH, Nevada STENY H. HOYER, Maryland JIM LIGHTFOOT, Iowa BOB CARR, Michigan RON PACKARD, California RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois SONNY CALLAHAN, Alabama RONALD D. COLEMAN, Texas HELEN DELICH BENTLEY, Maryland ALAN B. MOLLOHAN, West Virginia JAMES T. WALSH, New York JIM CHAPMAN, Texas CHARLES H. TAYLOR, North Carolina MARCY KAPTUR, Ohio DAVID L. HOBSON, Ohio DAVID E. SKAGGS, Colorado ERNEST J. ISTOOK, Jr., Oklahoma DAVID E. PRICE, North Carolina HENRY BONILLA, Texas NANCY PELOSI, California PETER J. VISCLOSKY, Indiana THOMAS M. FOGLIETTA, Pennsylvania ESTEBAN EDWARD TORRES, California GEORGE (BUDDY) DARDEN, Georgia NITA M. LOWEY, New York RAY THORNTON, Arkansas JOSfi E. SERRANO, New York ROSA L. DeLAURO, Connecticut JAMES P. MORAN, Virginia DOUGLAS "PETE" PETERSON, Florida JOHN W. OLVER, Massachusetts ED PASTOR, Arizona CARRIE P. MEEK, Florida Frederick G. Mohrman, Clerk and StaffDirector (ID DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND RE- LATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR 1994 Thursday, March 25, 1993. SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION WITNESSES FEDERICO PENA, SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION KATHERINE COLLINS, ACTING ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR BUDGET AND PROGRAMS Introduction Mr. Carr. Good morning. We will call this session of the Trans- portation Appropriations Subcommittee to order. Good morning, Mr. Secretary. Secretary Pena. Good morning, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Carr. It is a pleasure to welcome you back to the subcommittee. We appreciate you being with us today. The purpose, of course, is to support the Department's fiscal year 1994 budget request. We are proceeding a little out of order because we still haven't received the details of the President's budget, which I understand, 0MB will be submitted to Congress about April 5th. However, is permitting cabinet members to testify in advance of that date. The only budget information provided so far is the document accompa- nying the President's February 17th speech. The appropriation request, apparently, will be released by the Department today. So we do not have available to us the normal amount of information that we have at the time of the Secretary's hearing, but I am sure that we have enough to have a meaningful exchange. I know that the members will want to quiz you about that information as the country is very interested in the direction for the Department. For fiscal year 1994, the Department has requested for programs under the jurisdiction of this subcommittee a total of $39.9 billion in appropriations, obligation limitations, and other authority. This amount compares to $35.9 billion currently available to the Depart- ment and the $40.1 billion that will be available if the supplemen- tal is enacted as it has passed in the House earlier this month. Mr. Secretary, for the past 2 days the subcommittee has taken testimony from public witnesses on a host of issues. Thus far, their requests have exceeded the budget authority by $1.5 billion. I should add that the subcommittee will hold 3 or 4 more days of (1) hearings from public witnesses so the total is bound to grow consid- erably. Obviously, it will not be possible to accommodate all these requests, nor should we. Not all projects for which the funding is sought are of high quality and are nationally worthwhile. I am sure they are all in various forms locally worthwhile. In some cases, people are looking for funding far in advance of actual need. In other instances, new projects are proposed that just barely meet the non-Federal share requirements. In today's budget climate, I am not sure that is good enough. During the hearing today, among many other topics, I want to explore with you ideas on how we both can do a betterjob ofensur- ing that only quality projects will be funded and that limited tax dollars will be used for good, long-term economic growth opportuni- ties for the Nation. Once again, Mr. Secretary, it is a pleasure to have you with us. We appreciate your accommodating our schedule. Secretary Pena. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. And good morning to the members ofthe Committee. Mr. Carr. Your statement in full will be placed in the record. I ask that you hit the high points so that we can get right to questions. Statement of Secretary Pena Secretary Pena. I will do that, Mr. Chairman. I thank you and the members of the Committee for the leadership the Committee has provided over the past few years in helping guide us through difficult waters as we have made investments in transportation. I think today, because of this committee's very active involvement, we have been able to see significant improvements in our programs and policies. I look forward to working with you and continuing that relationship so that we can make the kind of investments that are important for the country, as you said, Mr. Chairman. I don't have to say to any member of this Committee that investment in transportation policies and programs and infrastructure is absolutely key to our domestic economy and to improving the quality of life for Americans. We are very much committed to that. I think the budget request that we're making reflects that commitment. On the other hand, we are also very sensitive to the point you made, Mr. Chairman, in that we want to be sensitive to the costs involved and also committed to another goal—, and that is deficit reduction. So trying to do both ofthose things investing in a quality way and in a targeted way, but at the same time to be thoughtful of our expenditures and not to exacerbate our deficit situation is a dual goal that we would like to support. budget overview Secondly, let me talk very generally about the budget overview. You have already indicated that our budget request is about $39.9 billion. That does not include MARAD, for obvious reasons. But this represents about a 10.9 percent growth over the fiscal year 1993 enacted level. Let me emphasis that if the President's stimulus package is passed, and if you add the stimulus amount to the fiscal year 1993 enacted level, then you will see that the fiscal year 1994 requested amount is about the same that we would be funding in fiscal year 1993. I make that point because I know at our last session a number of members raised the question about the continuity of our investment program and whether or not the stimulus package was simply a one-shot effort. As you see, the fiscal year 1994 investment proposal continues the investment we started with the stimulus package. Also, we are proposing to reduce staffing by almost 1,800 FTE by the end of fiscal year 1994. And we are committed to reducing administrative expenses by $28 million in fiscal year 1994. Those are the general points I want to make in giving you an overview ofthe budget. Now let me talk about the themes. DEPARTMENTAL THEMES There are five themes—that the fiscal year 1994 budget reflects. One—is making strategic and I want to emphasize the word strategic transportation investments to strengthen our economy to encourage the full economic potential of the Nation, ensuring that our transportation systems do not become a constraint on our economic activity. Recognizing that $1 out of $6 of GDP are now involved in one fashion or another in transportation-related activities emphasizes the need for us to have a speedy system, one that is re- liable, and one that is cost-effective. Our budget has included in it $28.4 billion for infrastructure investment, which is about 71 percent of our overall budget. This gives you a sense of our priority and where most of the money is going in the entire budget, 71 percent is going for direct infrastructure spending. As we shape the fiscal year 1994 budget, there are two particular industries where you will see us spend some time and attention: the revitalization of the airline industry and the maritime industry. The second general point is safety. Safety is going to continue to be a primary responsibility for the Department. It ranges from safety inspections to maritime safety to safety grants to States and localities. The budget proposes $1.95 billion for safety programs. It also involves a commitment to hazardous materials training and also reducing highway deaths through a number programs that we have in the Department. A third theme for fiscal year 1994 budget is strengthening the link between transportation and environmental policy. We want to support and promote planning and projects which will support the environment and to mitigate environmental damage. We do this, for example, through the congestion mitigation funds which are available under the highway law. We want to work closely with the Environmental Protection Agency and other Federal agencies so that we are not at cross purposes. Oftentimes those cross purposes result in funds getting bottled up in the pipeline and not being used for investment in communities. We want to encourage States to identify environmentally sound alternatives, reducing automobile congestion. We want to ensure compliance with our own cleanup responsibilities at DOT because we ourselves have been responsible for environmental degradation. The fourth general theme is advancing transportation technol- ogies and expertise. The President has spoken about our commitment to ensuring that we make a very significant commitment to new technology in our country. We want to do that in the area of We transportation. are going to do that by leadership. Very specifically, we have been given the opportunity to demon- strate leadership in the area of high speed rail and some type of maglev program. We are entrusted with the responsibility of devel- oping that program and I would be happy to talk about that as we answer questions. Other examples would be ensuring that the intelligent vehicle program really becomes something that is unique and fully opera- tive throughout the country. That is a major priority of the Trans- portation Department. — Usage of new navigation aids, like global positioning which I think is something we want to do not only on the aviation side, but also on the ground side to ensure that we continue to be the lead- ers in high technology. The fifth general theme of the Department is making intermoda- lism a reality and to make it an expectation of consumers throughout the country. We want to find ways to connect goods and people in a more safe and efficient manner so that we develop almost a seamless transportation system so that we have choice available to consumers and more competition in the marketplace, and coordina- tion to improve transportation services generally. Those are the five themes I think you will see in this budget. Now let me very specifically address some of the key budget areas because I know you don't have budget detail presented to you thus far. Let me do this by each mode, although there is more information in the prepared material I have submitted for the record. BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS Let me first discuss highways. We are proposing full ISTEA funding for the Federal-aid highway program. Included in that is We $214 million for intelligent vehicles. are proposing funding of NHTSA at a 14 percent increase, for a total of$307 million. In the area oftransit, we are proposing $4.6 billion, which is a 21 We percent increase over the fiscal year 1993 enacted level. are proposing more growth in transit in one year than transit has received in the past 4 years. We make this commitment because we think it is important to reducing air quality problems and to reliev- ing congestion. Our commitment to transit is going to focus on capital so that the formula capital grants will be at about $1.46 billion, which is a 22 percent growth, and discretionary grants at $1.78 billion. We are going to freeze operating assistance at $802 million for transit. We feel that it is far better to make the investment on the capital side than on the operating assistance. The third budget area is railroads at $1.05 billion. We want to continue to fund Amtrak at current levels, $633 million, and also the Northeast Corridor. We want to make a major initiative in the area of high speed ground transportation. Our proposal is to have $140 million in fiscal year 1994 and $1.3 billion over the next 5 years. We are going to use a combination ofboth general funds and existing trust funds in this effort. We want to focus on increasing speeds in selected corridors. We want to do further analyses of maglev to determine what position we are going to take on that technology. Another area is the FAA. We are proposing $9.2 billion for FAA. This is about a 3.5 percent increase in growth over fiscal year 1993. You will see an investment in F&E and research to deal with air- space modernization. You will also see some significant belt-tight- ening in the area of operations and a very special focus on ensuring that the AAS system meets its timetables and its budgetary targets. Lastly is the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard will see about a 4 percent increase over fiscal year 1993, for a total of $3.7 billion. The Coast Guard will essentially continue its multi-mission activities as it has in the past. We want to continue to be supportive of its efforts. In closing, Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, I wanted to give you a general overview of the fiscal year 1994 budget themes that the Department will support, our overall focus as it respects specific aspects of the Department of Transportation, and an indication to you that we want to work with you as we move forward in this budget year and the years to come. Let me stop with those comments, Mr. Chairman, and I would be happy to answer your questions. [The prepared statement of Secretary Peha follows:] OPENING STATEMENT OF THE HONORABLE FEDERICO PENA SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION BEFORE THE HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION WASHINGTON, D.C. MARCH 25, 1993 Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, I am pleased to appear before you to discuss the Department's budget request for Fiscal Year 1994. This Subcommittee has provided strong support for transportation programs and the effectiveness of our programs has benefitted from the guidance you have provided. If this nation is to have a sound, competitive transportation system to support our economy and our quality of life, we must invest in our transportation systems. At the same time, I am sure that you share the concern for deficit reduction and efforts to reduce the cost of Government. The President's FY 1994 budget for the Department of Transportation will ask this Subcommittee to approve $39.9 billion in appropriations, obligation limitations and exempt obligations. (This excludes $380 million requested for the Maritime Administration which is considered by another Subcommittee.) This request is 10.9 percent above the FY 1993 enacted level. Assuming enactment of the President's FY 1993 stimulus proposals, our request for FY 1994 is essenti xy the same as the FY 1993 level, reflecting a continuing commitment to investment in the capital needs of our transportation systems. The Department's FY 1994 budget responds to the President's emphasis on investment for the future, while moving concurrently to reduce the costs of government. Our request includes an increase of $3.7 billion for investments, focused heavily on infrastructure improvements. As a means of reducing government's burden on the taxpayer, we propose a reduction of 1,114 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) staff in FY 1993 and a further reduction of 651 FTE in FY 1994 from the 1993 enacted level. The budget reflects savings of $28 million in administrative expenses and proposes no new funding for certain programs funded in FY 1993 which saves $431 million from the baseline. This budget request supports a national goal of creating jobs and stimulating the economy on more than a short-term basis. In particular, capital investment in infrastructure, which totals $28.4 billion and accounts for almost 71 percent of the budget, supports job creation both directly and indirectly and facilitates the productivity of American business by supporting more efficient transportation. As we look forward to the next four years and to the goals we seek to accomplish, there are several key themes which I will stress as we manage our programs, develop our policies and