Transportation and Infrastructure

The House next week is expected to take up two bills that would continue the GOP's trend of seeking cuts to 2013 spending levels.

The Transportation and Housing and Urban Development spending bill, H.R. 5972, would cut $3.9 billion from current levels, and spend a total of $51.6 billion in the next year. The bill is expected to face vocal opposition from Democrats, who are pressing for higher spending levels, particularly in the area of transportation infrastructure upkeep.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said the House would continue to press for repeal of the 2010 healthcare law if the Supreme Court allows it to live on.

"If the court does not strike down the bill in its entirely, the gentleman knows, our conference is fully committed to repeal — total repeal — of the ObamaCare bill," Cantor said on the House floor in a discussion with House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.). "In July, we will continue to focus on that bill and its impact on employers."

The House voted to instruct conferees on the highway bill to keep language in the House measure that would block the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) attempt to regulate coal ash.

Members voted 260-138 in favor of the motion to instruct, which was offered by Rep. David McKinley (R-W.Va.). The motion was debated Wednesday evening.

The House voted 386-34 on Wednesday to instruct conferees to the House-Senate negotiations on a highway bill to finish their work by Friday.

The vote is the latest attempt by House members to influence the ongoing talks, although the move is largely seen as symbolic and the vote is nonbinding.

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.) traded accusations over the talks.

"I put everyone on notice: We are going to move to this bill” soon, the Senate majority leader said.

The House on Friday rejected a Republican proposal to instruct House negotiators on the highway bill to insist that the bill spend only the money collected through the gas tax on highway spending.

The motion to instruct conferees, from Rep. Paul Broun (R-Ga.), was defeated 82-323, as Republicans opposed it by a margin of 82-145.

A late-night debate over whether to drastically shrink federal highway spending in 2013 turned ugly just after 11 p.m., when a House Democrat accused a Republican and former U.S. Marine of hating America.

Members were debating a motion to instruct House conferees to push for a cap on federal highway spending of $37.5 billion for 2013, from Rep. Paul Broun (R-Ga.). That would take spending to a point well below what Senate Democrats have proposed in their bill — the Senate bill would spend $109 billion over two years.

The House on Thursday voted down a proposal that would have stripped Transportation Security Administration (TSA) airport screeners of badges, shields and policeman-like uniforms, despite growing complaints that some screeners are abusing the perception that they are trained officers of the law.

Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) proposed the language as an amendment to the Department of Homeland Security spending bill. The amendment would have prohibited the department from spending any money to provide TSA screeners with official-looking uniforms.

The House passed a motion on Wednesday that instructs House conferees to the highway bill that they should accept language guaranteeing that each state receives more guaranteed highway money from the federal government.

Members approved a motion to instruct from Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) by a 259-154 vote.