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Capitol Watch : Congress, Administration renew focus on job creation By Adrienne GILDEA, senior associate, Blakey & Agnew, LLC In his first State of the Union Address, President Obama focused largely on job creation. In his remarks, the President specifically called out the ties between the nation’s commerce and supply chain and job creation. He stated that the U.S. would recover from the recession, in part through infrastructure investment and a doubling of U.S. exports. The President also called on Congress to produce a jobs bill “without delay.” Following the State of the Union Address, Congress, and particularly the Senate, has struggled to produce legislation that could result in real job creation and garner strong public support. The Jobs for Main Street bill passed the House on a very small margin, and many in the Senate cited an aversion to passing more large-scale spending bills. The Senate put forth, but had not by mid-February passed, its own scaled-down version of the jobs bill. Senate sources indicated leadership is inclined to pursue a series of smaller bills, rather than on a major piece of legislation, to stimulate jobs. It remains unclear how the House and Senate will come together to meet the President’s call. The President reiterated that commitment to infrastructure investment in his 2011 Budget request, released February 1st. The Administration requested $79 billion to fund the Department of Transportation (DOT), citing safety and “critical investments for infrastructure to generate economic growth and support livable communities” as top priorities. As part of the $79 billion, the Administration requested $4 billion for a new National Infrastructure Innovation and Finance Fund (NIIFF), which would issue grants and loans for projects that provide a significant economic benefit to the nation or a region. However, this new commitment to infrastructure investment came coupled with an Administration promise to reduce the deficit and curb spending. During his State of the Union Address, the President committed to a federal spending freeze on most government programs. This will hold spending at lower levels as the Administration tries to rein in the federal deficit. With Congress and the Administration focused on the economy and job creation in February, the next Surface Transportation Authorization remains stalled. There was some discussion in early February about the possibility of a two step approach to the authorization to help deal with the spending freeze, budget shortfalls and policy debates. First, Congress would pass a longer-term extension of the current program to lock in higher, reliable funding levels. This would take the authorization through mid-2011 at the earliest. At this point, it is expected that the U.S. will be further along in recovery and therefore the political environment will hopefully be more receptive to raising funds for the larger policy overhauls. As of publication, it was largely expected that Congress would pass, at minimum, an extension of the current surface transportation program, though the duration of that extension was unclear. Adrienne Gildea manages the Coalition for America’s Gateways and Trade Corridors. Blakey & Agnew, LLC is a public affairs and communications consulting firm based in Washington, DC.	In This Issue Up Front News, Trends & Analysis News Trade Tools: Missing money Capitol Watch: Focus on job creation Supply Chain Chris Steele: Why you might be buying industrial real estate soon Compliance Corner: Use the Web for denied party lists Tech Trends: From open source to terminal visibility Product Review: Trucking drayage and chassis management software Commentary David Bennett: Real signs of trouble Gateway Glance New England Southern California The Port Community Bumpy Ride: Rebuilding PNW containerized exports Southwest Intermodal: Can intermodal incentives show the way? The Shipping Environment: Engaging in the community, slow steaming, and new green products Oceans are making waves Casualties The Big Texas spill leads off this month’s rundown Final Say Top 25 TIGER projects
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Capitol Watch : Congress, Administration renew focus on job creation