III 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. RES. 288 Affirming the importance of the long-term solvency of the Highway Trust Fund. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JULY 29, 2019 Mr. BRAUN submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works RESOLUTION Affirming the importance of the long-term solvency of the Highway Trust Fund. Whereas, in July 2019, the public debt of the United States was more than $22,000,000,000,000, increasing each year by a Federal budget deficit of nearly $1,000,000,000,000; Whereas the Federal Government is facing shortfalls in sev- eral Federal trust funds, including the Highway Trust Fund, which is expected to reach insolvency in July 2021; Whereas the infrastructure of the United States needs sub- stantial investment in order to continue supporting the growing economy of the United States; VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:11 Jul 29, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR288.IS SR288 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •SRES 288 IS Whereas, according to a report published in 2015 by the Fed- eral Highway Administration, 20 percent of the Federal- aid highways in the United States were in poor condition; Whereas short-term extensions providing funding to the Highway Trust Fund do not provide the certainty needed by States and local governments to enter into long-term roadbuilding contracts; and Whereas short-term extensions providing funding to the Highway Trust Fund, based solely on deficit spending, exacerbate the problem described in the preceding where- as clause and only serve to postpone solving the problem: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that— 1 (1) the Highway Trust Fund should achieve 2 long-term solvency through user fees; and 3 (2) any spending on Federal highway programs 4 during the next reauthorization period that exceeds 5 current Highway Trust Fund revenues and balances 6 should be fully offset. 7 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:11 Jul 29, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\SR288.IS SR288 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS