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U.S. Transportation Deputy Meets with Regional Chamber
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The Obama Administration wants to do “as much as possible” to capitalize on the economic development opportunity represented by the natural gas industry in the region, a U.S. Department of Transportation official said.
“We very much think of transportation as an enabler for economic development,” said John D. Porcari, deputy transportation secretary. “It’s investing in our highway system. It’s making sure that the rail connections are here, making sure the transmission capacity in the pipeline network for natural gas is here. There is a great economic development opportunity and as part of the Obama Administration energy initiative we want to make sure that we capitalize on that and are doing as much as possible.”
Porcari met with members and staff of the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber at the chamber's offices downtown Wednesday for what was described as a "White House Roundtable."
“They asked to talk to people in the business community to get a sense of what they were thinking about transportation policy,” said Tony Paglia, the chamber’s vice president, government affairs.
Also, the administration wants “to make sure that with the natural gas exploration and supply here that we were making sure that we were maximizing the economic development opportunities,” Porcari said.
“There’s a number of things that we’re working on,” Porcari explained. “Obviously the transportation network has to support the growth here in Youngstown and the employment growth, whether it’s the highway system, regional air service or some of the other things that aren’t quite as visible such as the natural gas interstate pipeline network. It needs to have the capacity to support some of the development that’s going on here.”
The deputy transportation secretary appeared receptive to the concerns local leaders expressed, Paglia said. Funding for highways and bridges was the top concern expressed, with both federal and state funding being decreased. “They’re hoping there will be a reauthorization of the federal highway bill but we know there are still problems in the Congress getting it passed,” he said.
The administration official said it was great to see that the business community and civic leaders “really have their act together and are working together as a region” to identify highway needs and specific opportunities for additional manufacturing, industrial and distribution uses. “Those are things that we’re very sensitive to and we want to find ways to help. We can do that through transportation investments,” he said.
By “any objective measure” the necessary investments in the transportation network here and nationwide haven’t been made, he acknowledged. That is being hampered in part by the current lack of a surface transportation bill. The Senate approved a version of the bill in March but the House of Representatives hasn’t approved a full bill, though a temporary extension – the 13th, Porcari said – was passed.
"You can't build the long-term, multiyear, game-changing transportation projects with short-term extensions. A long-term, stable surface transportation authorization is really a necessary precursor to be making progress here and around the country," he said. The kinds of projects that can make a difference are expensive and can’t be put out to bid with just 90 days of certainty for funding.
“We don’t think this is a partisan issue,” he remarked. “There aren’t Democratic and Republican potholes. There are just potholes.”
Copyright 2012 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.