Issue Brief 15-14
May 7, 2015
Summary 

On March 30, 2015, the Department of Transportation (DOT) proposed legislation to reauthorize surface transportation programs. The Generating Renewal, Opportunity, and Work with Accelerated Mobility, Efficiency, and Rebuilding of Infrastructure and Communities Throughout America Act, or GROW AMERICA Act, would reauthorize surface transportation programs through fiscal year (FY) 2021, at a total cost of $478 billion.

In addition to supplementing the current gas tax with an additional $40 billion per year in transfers from the general fund (equal to the 10-year revenue from business tax reforms), the GROW AMERICA Act would increase spending for highway and transit programs, create a new Transportation Trust Fund that includes rail and multimodal accounts, and reauthorize and expand a range of discretionary grant programs.