Both the House and Senate now have bills moving along nicely at an increasingly rapid pace. They are both heavy on valuable, needed reforms, but they disagree on the length of the bill, the amount of funding involved and where to find the difference between what the ailing Highway Trust Fund brings in and the total number of dollars written into the bill.

Talking to AEM President Dennis Slater today he reveals that the best short-term scenario he sees as both bills move ahead is to get the House and Senate into a conference as soon as  possible to work out their differences. The thinking seems to be that there’s not much to be done to the bills in their respective houses that hasn’t already been done, or, worse, won’t create some sort of blockage or reversal. Neither bill is being joyously received but why risk losing what looks like it’s at least not a bad deal for the industry and could be a lot worse.I mean there could be no bills, just extensions, or bills that are woefully underfunded instead of just being underfunded.

Given that there is broad agreement on both the need for a bipartisan bill and for the reforms addressed in both bills, you have a reasonable (for these times) foundation. And while the term of the bill and the amount and source of funding will be fiercely debated, a conference committee may be far enough down the legislative road to be the one place they might actually finalize something. Perhaps a case of ‘the buck stops here’ so we have little choice but to do something.

There is, also, the need for both parties to take some positive momentum into the election. As AEM, and others, say, there are no political potholes. You don’t want to be the guys in the conference voting for bad roads. So we lock both sides from both houses in a room and wait outside with the key, ignoring any pleas to open the door.

Here’s another thought – from me not AEM. Transportation Secretary La Hood has royally blasted AEIJA, saying “It’s the worst transportation bill I’ve ever seen during 35 years of public service.” If something of it survives a Senate/House conference and features in the final bill, will his boss be in a tight spot when it hits his desk in the pre-election months?

The for-hire trucking industry added 5,300 jobs on a seasonally adjusted basis in January, while payroll employment in the entire U.S. economy surged by 243,000 civilian nonfarm jobs, according to preliminary numbers released Friday, Feb. 3, by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The U.S. unemployment rate dropped to 8.3 percent.

Payroll employment in for-hire trucking is up by 51,500, or 4 percent, from January 2011. Employment is up by 89,100, or 7.2 percent, from the bottom in March 2010, but it remains 130,100, or 9 percent, from the peak in January 2007.

The latest report from BLS includes the annual benchmark revision in the size of the U.S. work force, adding 162,000 jobs to the number estimated in March 2011. For for-hire trucking, this meant that the revised BLS figure for payroll employment in December was 1.318 million jobs — 22,000 more than what BLS initially reported for December. The January figure is about 1.323 million.

The BLS numbers for trucking reflect all payroll employment in for-hire trucking, but they don’t include trucking-related jobs in other industries, such as a truck driver for a private fleet. Nor do the numbers reflect the total amount of hiring since they only include new jobs, not replacements for existing positions.

Commercial Carrier Journal (CCJ) is a sister publication to Aggregates Manager, Better Roads and Equipment World magazines.

The current nation is currently operating under an extension of Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), the surface transportation bill enacted by George W. Bush on Aug. 10, 2005. The bill originally expired on Sept. 30, 2009, has undergone a series of extensions since then. The latest extension is set to expire on March 31, 2012.

On Feb. 1, the T&I Committee began consideration of the American Energy & Infrastructure Jobs Act, a bill introduced in the House by Transportation Committee Chairman John L. Mica (R-Fla.) and Highways and Transit Subcommittee Chairman John J. Duncan Jr. (R-Tenn.). The legislation was approved early this morning.

“No other bill this Congress will create jobs, lower energy costs or improve our deteriorating infrastructure as effectively as this legislation,” Mica said in a written press statement. “With millions out of work, particularly in the construction industry, Americans deserve a long-term transportation, energy and jobs bill from Congress.

“The American Energy & Infrastructure Jobs Act will be the most significant reform of transportation programs in decades,” Mica continued in the written statement. “This bill will cut red tape, reduce the federal bureaucracy, move major infrastructure projects forward, attract more private sector participation, and give states the flexibility they need to address their most critical transportation needs.

A year ago, the Committee began holding bipartisan hearings and meetings around the country to gather input from state and local officials for a bill to reform and improve federal transportation programs, Mica said.

“Since then, we have worked to incorporate as many ideas from our Republican and Democratic colleagues as possible,” he said. “With today’s extensive and open debate, we have adopted many amendments, including 21 Democratic amendments, and we will continue to work with our colleagues as this bill moves forward.”

He likens this step forward to the progress that has been made on a long-term Federal Aviation Aviation (FAA) bill. “Some thought our committee would never complete a long-term FAA bill, but we have reached a bipartisan bicameral agreement on that critical measure,” Mica noted. “The President also recently signed a bipartisan pipeline safety bill that we sent him. We can also find common ground on this essential legislation to move our country and economy forward.”

Duncan points out that job creation is the No. 1 priority for voters across the United States, and he says this bill gives state governments a long-term funding stream that will put Americans back to work by improving our Nation’s highway and transit systems.

“In the last Congress, the President and Democratic leaders were unable to bring their reauthorization proposal to the floor,” Duncan said in the written statement from Mica’s office. “Their proposals for funding the bill were unrealistic.  I can assure you that this bill is realistic and will ensure that the Highway Trust Fund does not go broke.”

The American Energy & Infrastructure Jobs Act authorizes approximately $260 billion over five years to fund federal highway, transit and safety programs, consistent with current funding levels. This will provide long-term stability for states to undertake major infrastructure projects. The bill also includes provisions to improve programs for freight and passenger rail transportation, and calls for funds collected for maintaining the nation’s harbors to be invested for that purpose – not redirected for other unrelated government expenditures.

In addition, this legislation contains no earmarks. The last surface transportation law approved by Congress in 2005 contained over 6,300 earmarks.

The House is expected to consider H.R. 7 later this month.

According to Mica’s office, The American Energy & Infrastructure Jobs Act improves transportation programs in a number of ways, including the following:

Program Reform & Consolidation

Currently, there are more than 100 federal surface transportation programs, many of which were created during the last 50 years to expand the scope of the original programmatic goals. Many of these programs are duplicative or do not serve a national interest, according to Mica.

The American Energy & Infrastructure Jobs Act reforms surface transportation programs by consolidating or eliminating about 70 programs that are duplicative or do not serve a federal purpose.

Increased State Flexibility

The American Energy & Infrastructure Jobs Act eliminates a number of mandates that prevent states from being able to fund their most critical infrastructure needs.  The bill ensures that states will no longer be required to spend highway funding on non-highway activities, although they will be permitted to fund such activities if deemed to be priorities. The bill also delegates more project approval authority to states.

Cutting Red Tape & Streamlining Project Delivery

Due to the federal bureaucracy and red tape, the project approval and permitting process creates needless infrastructure delays and cost increases. According to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), highway projects can take up to 15 years to complete, and a lengthy project approval process accounts for a majority of these delays.

The American Energy & Infrastructure Jobs Act streamlines and condenses the project review process by cutting bureaucratic red tape, allowing federal agencies to review transportation projects concurrently, and setting hard deadlines for federal agencies to approve projects, in addition to providing states with more approval authority.

More information from the markup of H.R.7 can be accessed here, including information regarding amendments.

(For a PDF of the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act, click here.)

(For the 14-page summary of the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act in a downloadable PDF format, click here.)

Click here for the report, Federal Surface Transportation Reauthorization:Moving Beyond SAFETEA-LU, by Joung H. Lee, associate director for finance and business development, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) and deputy director, AASHTO Center for Excellence in Project Finance.

Mica is the chairman of the T&I Committee.

More information, including details on amendments, will be forthcoming later today, according to a written press statement released in the early morning hours Feb. 3.

For a PDF of the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act, click here.

For the 14-page summary of the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act in a downloadable PDF format, click here.

This auction is open to the public. Registration to bid is free, though a refundable bid deposit may be required. Interested buyers can go to the auction site to inspect, test and compare items beginning February 10 at 8 a.m.

“The auction attracts one of the largest, most diverse audiences of consignors and bidders from around the world,” says Steve Kriebel, regional sales manager for Ritchie Brothers Auctioneers. “Because of this, the selection of equipment featured in the auction is plentiful and there is something available for all types of buyers everywhere.”

Thousands of late model equipment items from manufacturers such as Caterpillar and Volvo will highlight this year’s auction. Attendees can expect to see products such as forklifts, loader backhoes, wheel loaders, articulated dump trucks, motor graders, motor scrapers, crawler tractors, crawler loaders, pavers, skid steer loaders and multi-terrain loaders.

For more information about the auction, visit rbauction.com. For information about selling equipment, call 863-420-9919.

Wacker Neuson has been the exclusive manufacturer of Gehl and Mustang branded compact excavators and all wheel steer loaders since 1999.

Christopher Barnard, president and CEO of Wacker Neuson Corp., says that the the termination of the Gehl contract is consistent with the company’s strategy in North America, which he says is “to focus resources and products on the further development of the Wacker Neuson brand for its unique and extensive combined product offering of compact equipment as well as light equipment.”

Barnard adds in a written statement: “This increased focus on this broad product range will enhance our ability to better support Wacker Neuson’s extensive North American distribution system.”

Researchers at the College of William and Mary’s Thomas Jefferson Program in Public Policy determined each dollar spent on infrastructure generates roughly 35 cents in indirect economic activity for manufacturers, 20 cents fro professional and business services providers and 10 cents for the finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing sector. Over 20 years, one dollar in aggregate infrastructure spending generates 96 cents in taxes. Each dollar invested in highways and streets returns approximately 35 cents in tax revenue over two decades. The study was commissioned by Associated Equipment Dealers.

Most diesel engine manufacturers chose to use Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) aftertreatment technology to meet the required emissions levels. Navistar diesel engines use an in-cylinder exhaust gas recirculation technology to reduce exhaust emissions and is the only North American engine manufacturer to do so. Currently, Navistar diesel engines emit more grams of N0x than their competitors’ engines. But because Navistar exceeded the performance parameters set for earlier emissions reduction regulations, the company was awarded emissions credits by the EPA that allow them to do.

Last week, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) issued a public letter to Navistar informing them that its emissions credits for the MaxxForce 13 engine were about to expire. The move by CARB is highly unusual, but Jack Allen, president of Navistar’s Engine Group declined to comment on the agency’s motives. “The bottom line is that Navistar will sell engines in 2012 that are fully certified in all 50 states,” Allen said. “And any issue between Navistar and the EPA will remain between us and the EPA. Our customers will not be brought into that. We’re going to open and transparent about that’s going on with the EPA. But in terms of those issues impacting the customer, it will be a non-issue.”

A spokesman for Navistar noted that EPA emissions credits to not apply across the company’s engine line in a blanket fashion. Each individual engine platform has its own individual “bank” of credits. So, Navistar’s DT medium-duty engines, as well as the MaxxForce 11 and MaxxForce 15 engines are not included in CARB’s announcement and will continue to be sold under using their existing bank of EPA credits. Additionally, once an engine is submitted for testing, Navistar notes, EPA will not penalize the submitting company if credits expire before the certifcation process is complete. In that case, credit extensions will be issued to insure EPA compliance.

“We will work through the normal certification process for the MaxxForce 13 with the EPA and follow up with our additional engine platforms later this year,” Allen said. “We will continue to use the credits we have selling our engines going forward. This is an on-going process and a continual refinement process of our engines and our emissions technology. But we are confident the MaxxForce 13 will be certified as compliant by the EPA, validating our in-cylinder emissions reduction technology and without any degredation in terms of performance, durability and fuel economy for our customers.”

The award, named after the founding president ARTBA’s Research and Education Division (RED), annually “recognizes individuals who have made remarkable contributions to the field of transportation education.”  Farkas was selected by his peers for his career body of work.

He is a nationally-recognized expert on research and teaching in transportation economics and policy, logistics, systems evaluation, urban transportation, and land use.  He has previously been president of both the ARTBA RED and the Council of University Transportation Centers.

Dr. Farkas has served at Morgan State University since 1983, rising from associate professor to professor and then director of the National Center for Transportation Management, Research and Development.  He worked as a transportation engineering economist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service and as a research associate in economics for the Georgia Department of Transportation.  He received his doctorate from the University of Georgia in 1978.

The 2012 CUTC Awards were presented to students, educators and transportation officials in six categories:

“Lifetime Achievement in Transportation Research & Education Award,” which recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions throughout their professional lives to transportation research and education by working in government, business or non-governmental organizations: Bill Millar, who retired as president of the American Public Transportation Association last fall.

The award for “Distinguished Contribution to University Transportation and Research,” given annually to individuals who have had a long history of significant and outstanding contribution to university-level transportation education and research: Dr. Daniel Turner, University of Alabama.

“CUTC-ARTBA New Faculty Award,” presented to tenure-track educators in recognition of outstanding reaching and research contributions in the transportation field: Dr. Bruce Wang, associate professor at Texas A&M University.

“Milton Pikarsky Award,” given to graduate students in the transportation field for outstanding doctoral dissertations, Master of Science theses or Master of Science/Master of Engineering reports with an emphasis on science and technology: Dr. Vikrant Suhas Vaz, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Mr. Alexander Bigazzi, Portland State University.

“Charlie V. Wootan Award” given to graduate students in the transportation field for outstanding dissertations, theses, or Master of Science/Master of Engineering reports with an emphasis on policy and planning: Dr. Kari Edison Watkins, University of Washington and Mrs. Carey Blackmar Barr, University of Texas, Austin.

“Neville A. Parker Award,” given to students pursuing Master of Science degrees in the transportation field for outstanding non-thesis papers or projects in the areas of policy and planning, or science and technology: Mr. Michael Litschi, The Mineta Transportation Institute, San Jose State University and Mr. Rubens Sylvain, The City College of the City University of New York.