Tag: Senate

April 27, 2023

The Senate voted to overturn President Joe Biden’s pollution limits for big rigs that Republicans said were too aggressive, but were heralded by environmentalists as long overdue. The decision, in a 50-49 vote, rescinds rules that went into effect last […]

December 23, 2022

The Senate passed a massive $1.7 trillion spending bill on Dec. 22 that finances federal agencies through September and provides another large round of aid to Ukraine one day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s dramatic address to a joint meeting […]

December 1, 2022

Moving quickly to help avert a rail workers strike that would have cost the national economy an estimated $2 billion per day, the U.S. Senate on Dec. 1 advanced a tentative labor agreement between railroads and their employees. Senators on […]

November 22, 2022

President Joe Biden’s pick to lead the agency on highway policy will be considered by a Senate panel this month. The Environment and Public Works Committee is scheduled to meet Nov. 29 to vote on the nomination of Shailen Bhatt […]

August 8, 2022

Senate Democrats passed their signature climate, tax and health care package Sunday afternoon, Marianne LeVine, Burgess Everett and Jordain Carney report, despite some last-second changes to adjust corporate minimum tax provisions. The bill includes billions in transportation-related spending, most notably […]

July 26, 2022

A $52 billion boost to the U.S. domestic semiconductor industry moved one step closer to reality July 26 when the Senate advanced legislation providing grants, incentives and tax breaks to the sector and set it up for final passage this […]

May 26, 2022

Legislation designed to enhance market transparency and direct the Federal Trade Commission to prevent fraud or manipulation linked to inflating gasoline prices was approved by a Senate panel. The Commerce Committee on May 25 voted along party lines to advance […]

May 17, 2022

Nominees to fill senior roles at the U.S. Department of Transportation recently were confirmed by the Senate. John Putnam was approved to serve as general counsel, and Vicky Wassmer was approved as chief financial officer. The Senate also voted 75-22 […]

May 10, 2022

Legislation soon to be introduced in the state Senate would modernize the management of the state’s public transportation systems. The legislation would update Title 74 to provide predictability in capital funding and increase local control in transit decisions. The bill […]

July 30, 2021

The Senate advanced a roughly $1 trillion infrastructure plan on July 30 with a bipartisan group of senators helping it clear one more hurdle and bracing to see if support can hold during the next few days of debate and […]

July 15, 2021

A nominee for a senior policy post at the U.S. Department of Transportation was recently confirmed by the U.S. Senate while other DOT nominees await votes before the full chamber or in committee. The Senate easily confirmed Carlos Monje as […]

May 6, 2021

Bipartisan legislation has been introduced in the Senate that would require scrubbing such personal information as social security and passport numbers on shipping manifests for military and government personnel moving to the U.S. from overseas before the information is sold […]

April 20, 2021

Concerns among some lawmakers regarding climate change and freight connectivity would be addressed by President Joe Biden’s $2.25 trillion infrastructure plan, the U.S. Senate’s funding leader said April 20. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), chairman of that chamber’s Appropriations Committee, pointed […]

February 2, 2021

The U.S. Department of Transportation has a new leader in Pete Buttigieg, a 2020 presidential candidate and the former mayor of South Bend, Ind. Buttigieg on Feb. 2 was confirmed to become secretary of transportation by a Senate vote of […]

October 26, 2020

With many forecasters placing Democrats as slight favorites to win the Senate in eight days, we thought we’d start this pre-election week with a committee primer to get you up to speed with what transportation policy might look like in […]

June 17, 2020

A Senate committee chairman sharply criticized the Federal Aviation Administration on June 17 for what he alleged were repeated failures to respond to a committee’s investigation into two crashes of Boeing Co.’s 737 Max. Sen. Roger Wicker, the Republican head […]

July 29, 2019

The first step to reauthorize the country’s highway programs is scheduled for July 30 in the Senate, thanks to the leadership of the Environment and Public Works Committee. This five-year, $287 billion reauthorization of the 2015 FAST Act highway law […]

July 25, 2019

DICKSON CONFIRMED: The Senate gave Dickson the green light to be administrator of the FAA on Wednesday in a 52-40 party-line vote, with seven presidential candidates and Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) not voting. (Isakson is in Georgia recovering after a […]

October 2, 2018

The FAA bill cleared a procedural hurdle Monday night and Republican senators say they expect a vote today. “It’s gonna pass by an overwhelming margin,” Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) told MT. It’s been 460 days since the Senate Commerce Committee […]

September 19, 2018

The U.S. Senate is expected to take up as early as this month House-passed legislation that would authorize projects designed to improve infrastructure at ports, harbors and waterways, as well as boost flood protection programs. The Senate’s top lawmakers on […]