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Obama Supports Transportation Bill to Save Jobs

September 7th, 2011
President Barack Obama has once again urged Congress once more to extend the transportation bill, following a jobs report that was not very flattering of the American economy.  This message served as a warning that letting the current transportation bill expire would be an economic disaster that could be easily avoided.

Obama focused on the amount of jobs that would be furloughed and eventually removed if a decision could not be made in Congress. “Right away, over 4,000 workers would be furloughed without pay. If it’s delayed for just 10 days, we will lose nearly $1 billion in highway funding that we can never get back. And if we wait even longer, almost 1 million workers could be in danger of losing their jobs over the next year.” These jobs are literally left in the hands of Congress.  They can choose to extend the bill, or create a more long term solution, but action needs to be made regardless.

President Obama made a speech from the White House’s Rose Garden last week, in which he was joined by Transportation Secretary, Ray LaHood, as well as Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO, and also David Chavern, the chief operating officer of the Chamber of Commerce. He gave Congress another warning at that time also, stating that letting the transportation bill expire at the end of the month would be “not acceptable” and “inexcusable.”

In his recent address, the president reiterated that thousands of workers and their families would be hurt if infrastructure projects like highway construction, bridge repair and mass transit systems were put on hold. Obama has previously spoken about renewing the transportation bill as a “no-brainer.” It is also important to note that Congress has renewed the bill seven times in the last two years, and as badly as Americans need jobs, not renewing it this time would be a grave mistake. Nonetheless, a new and sustainable bill would be the best option.

“But thanks to political posturing in Washington, they haven’t been able to extend it this time — and the clock is running out,” he said. Virginia, Minnesota and Florida are examples of states that have thousands of jobs on the chopping block, and the President argued that the decision to let the bill expire is “completely avoidable.”

“This isn’t a Democratic or a Republican issue — it’s an American issue,” he said. The president also mentioned that a group of 128 Democratic and Republican mayors have written to Congress, urging their representatives to pass the extension.

Obama also added a statement that nicely summarizes the heart of the issue: “There’s a lot of talk in Washington these days about creating jobs. But it doesn’t help when those same folks turn around and risk losing hundreds of thousands of jobs just because of political gamesmanship. We need to pass this transportation bill and put people to work rebuilding America.”

To see a video of Obama’s address urging the passage of the bill, you can check it out here. This Information has been provided by the Truck Tax Team at www.ExpressTruckTax.com.

President Barack Obama Pushes for the Renewal of Transportation Bills

September 6th, 2011
On Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at the Rose Garden, President Barack Obama spoke about the pending Transportation Bill currently in Congress to a large gathering of highway workers. He was joined by Transportation Secretary, Ray LaHood, as well as Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO, and also David Chavern, the chief operating officer of the Chamber of Commerce.

Among other things, the main focus of President Obama’s speech revolved around the necessity of renewing the Transportation Bill that is currently set to expire September 30. The primary arguments for extending the bill were that not extending it would cost up to a million jobs of hard working highway workers and extending the bill would also bring much needed tax revenue to fund road repairs and maintenance.

“Now is the time for Congress to extend the transportation bill, and keep our workers on the job. Now is the time to put our country before party and give certainty to the people who are trying to get by. There’s work to done. There are workers ready to do it. That’s why I expect Congress to act immediately.” said the President.

Video Link: http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/ExtensionofTr

http://www.c-spanvideo.org/videoLibrary/assets/swf/CSPANPlayer.swf?pid=301309-1

Trucking Industry Supports President Obama’s Push for Highway Funding

September 5th, 2011
On Wednesday, August 31, 2011, President Barack Obama was joined by Transportation Secretary, Ray LaHood, as well as Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO, and also David Chavern, the chief operating officer of the Chamber of Commerce as he made a speech to a gathering of Highway Workers regarding the Transportation Bill currently in Congress. His speech mainly focused on the jobs that would be lost if Congress failed to pass the bill by September 30th (the current transportation legislation is set to expire on Sept. 30). According to his speech, nearly one million highway workers would be out of a job if the current legislation expired without enacting new legislation.  

The current transportation legislation “The Safe, Accountable, Flexible, and Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users” expired in 2009, but Congress has kept adding extensions to the legislation. The most recent one expires at the end of September. If it is not extended, or if new legislation is not enacted to replace it, the transportation industry will experience a shutdown similar to what the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) experienced earlier this year.

If there is no immediate solution, the Transportation department will experience about 4,000 jobs to be furloughed without pay, and up to one million jobs if the delay is any longer. These are jobs for the people who build our roads and keep them safe. It would be detrimental and irresponsible to our highway system if this legislation is not kept in place.  

The American Trucking Associations (ATA) came out in support of President Obama stating that Congress needed to quickly act on another extension, but  more extensions are no replacement for a long-term highway solution.  The ATA also urged the administration to use caution when using private sector funding for public infrastructure.   

Soon after, The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials also released a statement in agreement with the ATA.  Another organization that supported President Obama’s push for new legislation came as a surprise was OOIDA (Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association). This was a bit surprising because OOIDA and the ATA have had a history of having a different opinion than the ATA. But as to this issue they have a similar viewpoint. They also agree that the government should try to avoid private sector funding for public transit.

This delay in the typical tax year for those filing Truck Taxes has affected an entire industry. Once an extension is passed or new legislation is enacted, those Truck Taxes will be able to be filed with Express Truck Tax at www.ExpressTruckTax.com. You can use this service to quickly EFile your Heavy Vehicle Use Taxes with Form 2290, 8849, IFTA and more!  It only takes minutes to complete.  If there are any questions, you can send them to (704)234-6005 or support@ExpressTruckTax.com.

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