Washington, DC – Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Moving America Forward Act (H.R. 2), legislation to invest in American infrastructure and create jobs. The House-passed bill included several of Congresswoman Brownley’s bills and amendments.
“The Moving Forward Act puts the U.S. on a clear path toward achieving zero emissions from the transportation sector by prioritizing carbon pollution reduction, investing in public transit, and building out fueling infrastructure for zero-emission vehicles,” stated Brownley. “It also makes significant investments in building resilient infrastructure to withstand the impacts of climate change, including wildfires, landslides, and floods. From rail, to shipping, to aviation, to cars, trucks and buses, to what powers them, this is the most comprehensive look at the transportation sector with respect to climate change in the history of Congress.
“In addition to the transportation sector, the Moving Forward Act is a bold, comprehensive bill that takes the economic and health challenges we are facing today, to invest smartly, substantially, and deliberately into our future. A future that lifts frontline communities, creates millions of good-paying jobs, and invests in the infrastructure that keeps us housed, healthy, and economically strong, with a keen eye on slowing and eventually reversing the climate crisis that threatens all of that.
“In the bill, we invest in affordable housing, child care, broadband, a smart electric grid, clean water, clean energy, community development, improving our health care system, a modern and efficient postal service, restoring ecosystems, and cleaning up public lands.”
The Moving America Forward Act also included several bills and amendments spearheaded by Congresswoman Brownley:
- The bill will make significant investments in zero emission buses, a key priority advanced by Brownley’s Green Bus Act. Additionally, Brownley secured amendments in the Committee-passed bill to ensure all California transit agencies are eligible to apply for zero emission bus grants, and provisions to incentivize all transit agencies to make the transition to zero emission vehicles.
- The bill sets aside specific funds for local community priorities, a key priority of Brownley’s advanced through her Support Local Transportation Act and the Surface Transportation Investment Act. Brownley secured an amendment during the Committee consideration that will increase the sub-allocation of Surface Transportation Program funds to local communities, like Ventura County, from 55% under current law to 60% over the 5 year authorization period in the bill.
- The bill also creates a new grant program specifically for local community transportation infrastructure priorities. In addition to ensuring this program was open to Ventura County and our local cities, Brownley secured language ensuring that the Port of Hueneme – a key economic driver in Ventura County – would be eligible to compete for grants under this program.
- The bill requires the Federal Highway Administration to include the Port of Hueneme – and other ports with more than $1 billion in annual cargo value – in the national multimodal freight network, language advanced through Brownley’s National Multimodal Freight Network Improvement Act.
- The bill also establishes new metrics and funding set-asides for pedestrian and bike safety infrastructure, and it requires states to make more safety investments to address areas with high fatality rates among vulnerable road users, a key priority advanced by Brownley’s Safe And Friendly for the Environment (SAFE) Streets Act.
- The bill also includes the Stop for School Buses Act, bipartisan legislation that Brownley co-authored, which will address significant risks to children posed when vehicles violate school bus stop signs.
- The bill also includes Brownley’s amendment to require the Department of Transportation to conduct a thorough study of climate resilient infrastructure was adopted during Committee consideration.
- The bill includes requirements for federal agencies that purchase or lease vehicles to utilize all zero-emission vehicles for light passenger vehicles and to utilize zero-emission medium- and heavy-duty vehicles to the maximum extent possible, a key initiative advanced through Brownley’s Green Federal Fleet Act.
- The bill helps U.S. manufacturers create jobs and to expand production of zero-emission medium- and heavy-duty vehicles, a key priority advanced by Brownley’s Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Program Reform Act.
- Finally, the bill includes Brownley’s bi-partisan amendment to improve the highway-railway grade crossing program to allow federal safety program funds to be used to replace functionally obsolete warning devices.
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