The next surface transportation bill is increasingly at the center of attention on Capitol Hill. APTA asked some of its partners to share their plans for passing legislation that helps keep public transportation in the United States up and running. Here are their responses to the following question:

APTA’s top legislative priority is to pass a multi-year, multimodal surface transportation bill that will fund public transit commensurate with its needs and value to the nation. What is your organization’s top legislative priority related to MAP-21 reauthorization, and what role does cross-organizational collaboration play in your legislative agenda?

Mary Fallin
Governor, Oklahoma
2013-14 Chair, National Governors Association
There is bipartisan consensus among governors that surface transportation requires both a long-term vision and funding stability to provide for our nation’s diverse mobility needs. It also requires an intergovernmental partnership and increased flexibility for states.

The structural deficit in the federal Highway Trust Fund, worsening congestion, rapidly expanding freight movement and resulting delays, and concerns about assuring rural access and connectivity make it imperative that leaders at all levels of government work together to develop and deliver fresh solutions.

The National Governors Association is open to collaborative opportunities with national organizations that have similar policy objectives on surface transportation reauthorization provided those opportunities complement our bipartisan policy agenda.

Janet Kavinoky
Executive Director, Transportation & Infrastructure, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Vice President, Americans for Transportation Mobility Coalition
The Chamber’s top priority is securing predictable, reliable, and growing revenue source(s) that support a long-term bill that supports long-term planning and capital investment.

Given the magnitude of this challenge, without cooperation across all organizations the goal will be elusive.

Jim Philipps
Media Relations Manager
National Association of Counties
One of NACo’s 2014 legislative priorities is to support county priorities in the reauthorization of MAP-21. Those county priorities include funding for locally owned roads and bridges, reforms that strengthen the role of counties in transportation planning and federal funding allocation processes, and policies that expedite project delivery. However, what’s most vital to our membership is that Congress passes a multi-year (more than two years) surface transportation bill that provides long-term certainty and increases funding for transportation infrastructure.

When it makes sense, we collaborate closely with our partners at other state and local government and transportation organizations.

There are definitely priorities that we share with our partners and when we are aligned; our joint advocacy efforts yield a much stronger and more effective voice.