Highway Holdup

Wall Street Journal
By STEPHEN MOORE

The road construction lobby is desperate for a long-term highway funding bill, but the House and Senate are still miles apart in agreeing to legislation. Both have passed their own versions of a highway measure, but the Senate bill spends $8 billion to $10 billion above the gas tax trust amount.

That's a break-the-bank solution that House conservatives won't agree to. They are demanding a plan that pays for the construction projects with oil royalty money from opening up parts of Alaska and perhaps offshore areas to drilling. The White House and liberal Senate Democrats are adamantly opposed to that solution. In an interview, House Transportation Committee Chairman John Mica of Florida says "the House is pretty determined to pay for any additional spending beyond what the gas tax brings in. We're not going to increase the deficit or spending caps."

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