The President will be speaking before a Joint session of Congress and the American people tonight to discuss the State of the Union. The first State of the Union was delivered by President George Washington in January 1790 and since then has become a vehicle for a sitting President to outline his legislative agenda for the upcoming year.

During last year’s State of the Union address President Obama discussed the nation’s infrastructure crisis and referenced ASCE’s 2009 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure as a reason why action must be taken to repair and maintain our nation’s roads, bridges, ports, water systems, dams, and rail. While it is not likely that the Report Card will be reference two years in a row, ASCE still has a few things that we would like to hear President Obama discuss.

ASCE hopes that President Obama calls on Congress to rebuild the infrastructure that once was the envy of the world and spur the innovative imagination that has historically defined this country. It is through a state of the art infrastructure and a growing number of students moving into fields like civil engineering, that America can ensure that the state of the our union will remain strong for years to come.

Since last year’s State of the Union address Congress has only been able to extend the surface transportation and FAA programs, instead of pass critical reauthorization bills. Additionally, since last January the National Dam Safety Program has expired and drinking water and wastewater state revolving funds continue to operate off of a 1987 authorization. At a time when the nation needs to create jobs and grow the economy in order to remain competitive, funding the nation’s infrastructure and producing students who excel in math and the sciences can prove to be the key.

Therefore, ASCE has defined several legislative priorities.

First, we need to rebuild America to compete in the 21^st Century. For that reason ASCE calls on President Obama and Congress to:

• Pass a multi-year surface transportation bill at level funding.
• Finalize a FAA reauthorization in the next few weeks.
• Reauthorize the National Dam Safety Program for 5 years.
• Begin work on drinking water and wastewater SRF reauthorization bills in 2012.
• Take up a new Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) that includes the creation of a national levee safety program.

Secondly, we need to support American innovation through several federal government run programs. ASCE would like to see President Obama and Congress:

• Pass legislation that would reauthorize the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) and the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program.
• Reauthorize the existing Math and Science Partnerships program at the Department of Education.
• Increase funding annual funding for NIST and NSF programs.

Do not forget to also listen to Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels’ Republican response to the State of the Union. ASCE hopes that Governor Daniels also asserts the importance of rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure and promoting innovation. These issues are not Democrat or Republican issues, but instead the key factors which make any country great.

ASCE will have a full report about the State of the Union in Friday’s edition of This Week in Washington!

We are repeating this post because we thought the information would also be of interest to the readers of this blog. It was first posted on Friday, January 20th, 2012

As the Louisiana Section was gearing up to release its first state Report Card this month, members realized that spreading the word of their findings would require an effective public relations campaign. Realizing they lacked the expertise to execute such a campaign, Section members hired a PR consultant, Baton Rouge-based Mark Lambert.  The Section also reached out to ASCE’s Communications and Government Relations departments to request training based on ASCE’s PR University seminar.

A half-day PR workshop allowed members to work one on one with ASCE staff who traveled to Baton Rouge. As tailored specifically for the Report Card’s release, the workshop identified proper spokespersons and covered potential issues they might have to address. One critical component was the development of strategies to promote the Report Card to elected officials after the planned press conference, in order to keep the momentum going.

With what they’d learned during the PR workshop in mind, the Section wisely decided to reschedule the release upon learning that Louisiana’s governor would unveil an education plan on the same date. With that conflict avoided, the consultant and Nedra Davis, the Section’s communications representative, reached out to reporters one day prior to the rescheduled event to make sure the press conference was on their radar. The day of the event, a news release was distributed statewide. ASCE’s Communications staff distributed it to national trade publications, as well as some Washington, D.C.-based reporters who covered ASCE’s national  Report Card for America’s Infrastructure and our Failure to Act economic studies.

The press conference was a success.  Three TV stations and other media covered their announcement.  The Louisiana Section’s actions reflect the type and quality of services ASCE can offer to Sections and Branches — whether it is a state Report Card or the designation of a historical civil engineering landmark.

UPDATED: 01/20/12 at 5:30pm

As the second session of the 112th Congress commences several ASCE priority issues remain unresolved. Thus far the 112th Congress has seen little legislative action on issues related to the civil engineering profession, however House and Senate leaders have indicated that infrastructure legislation could be a top priority in 2012. In the immediate future Congress must address FAA programs, which have been running on fumes since the last authorization expired in September 2007. With the most recent FAA extension expiring on January 31st Congress will have take action when they return to keep FAA programs operating, while leadership also indicates that surface transportation legislation will be a top priority for the returning Congress. Additionally, both the House and Senate have indicated that a new surface transportation reauthorization will be a top priority once legislative work is underway this year.

So how did Congress leave ASCE priority issues in December and what can we expect to see action on in the upcoming months?
FAA Reauthorization – The 22nd, and current, extension for FAA programs will expire on January 31st. However, on Friday, January 20th, it was reported that  House and Senate leaders have reached agreement on the long-awaited bill to reauthorize FAA programs. Reportedly, Republicans have backed down on a controversial labor provision that had drawn a veto threat from the White House and has allowed for the continued stalemate between House and Senate versions of the bill.  The deal paves the way for finalization of an FAA bill in the upcoming days. The last FAA authorization expired in September 2007.

Surface Transportation Authorization – When Congress left in December, a two-year surface transportation authorization (MAP-21) had been passed by the Environment and Public Works Committee and the Commerce Committee. However, the Finance and Banking Committees still had not taken action. MAP-21 would authorize the program for two years at current levels of investment, plus inflation. In the House, Speaker John Boehner stated that he would like to move an infrastructure-energy bill within weeks of Congress returning in January. Details on the bill are still scarce, however Speaker Boehner has indicated that the legislation will be multi-year and at or near current investment levels. In the meantime, surface transportation programs continue to run off of the latest extension, which will expire on March 31st.
While the surface transportation bill is being characterized as a major jobs bill in both chambers, the two approaches are very different, meaning another extension could be necessary. Both Senate and House leadership are stating that the surface transportation bill will be a top priority in the upcoming months, however how to fund the program will be difficult to resolve.
ASCE supports a robust, multi-year, surface transportation bill and is working with various transportation stakeholders to ensure that transportation will be priority number one for the returning Congress.

Clean Water Act Reauthorization – Funding for the State Revolving Loan Fund (SRF) program has not been authorized by Congress since 1987, the year the program was created. With the presumed completion of a surface transportation bill early in the year, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee are likely to begin work on an SRF reauthorization bill in 2012.
Although ASCE continues to push aggressively for public investments in wastewater and drinking-water infrastructure, Congress has been slow to act on legislation to finance the reconstruction of America’s aging water infrastructure. It is difficult for lawmakers, much like the general public, to prioritize water infrastructure when the deterioration remains hidden from the public eye.

Dam Safety Act Reauthorization – The National Dam Safety Program expired at the end of September 2011 without a reauthorization bill introduced. ASCE is working with House and Senate dam safety champions to have new legislation introduced in the upcoming weeks. Legislation would be for 5 years and provide approximately $10 million annually to state dam safety programs.

Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) – The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee expect to take up the latest version of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) in 2012. The infrastructure portions of the bill will arguably be smaller in scope than in previous years. In the more than four years since the last bill was enacted, there have been only about 10 project reports that had been signed by the Chief of Engineers, the last step before congressional approval in a WRDA bill. There were 62 project reports submitted to Congress and eligible for authorization in WRDA 2007.
Policy issues are expected to dominate the debate. ASCE has been pressing Congress for several years to enact a national levee safety program, and congressional staff say such a program has a good chance of being included in the next WRDA.

Natural Hazards Risk Reduction Act – legislation that would reauthorize the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) and the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program is slowly moving through Congress. In the Senate, S. 645 was approved by the Commerce Committee on May 5, 2011. The Senate bill would reauthorize both programs for five years, with NEHRP at $905 million and the Wind Program at $135.5 million. The House Science Committee approved H.R. 3479 on December 1, 2011, which would authorize both programs for 3 years, with NEHRP at $365.7 million and the Wind Program at $64 million. The House bill must also pass through the Natural Resources and Transportation and Infrastructure Committees before floor consideration.

 
While ASCE supports the larger authorizations contained in the Senate bill, we remain concerned that partisan disagreements over authorization levels may derail reauthorization, placing both programs in jeopardy for losing all funding. Authorization for both programs expired in September of 2009, with NEHRP receiving roughly flat appropriations each year since then.
K-12 Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics (STEM) Education – ASCE, as a founding member of the STEM Education Coalition, is following the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education (ESEA) Act – the last version of which was known as the “No Child Left Behind Act”.
While ASCE and the Coalition have taken no position on the more controversial accountability provisions of the current law, we are working to ensure that whatever legislation comes forth includes strong math and science components. One component of ESEA is addressed through S. 1675, on which the Coalition worked with Sen. Jeff Merkley to develop. The legislation, the Preparing Students for Success in the Global Economy Act, would reauthorize the existing Math and Science Partnerships program at the Department of Education, modernizing the program and expanding its range of activities and partnerships. While there is a surprising amount of agreement in Congress, outlook for ESEA reauthorization is unsure.

As we start the new year, there has been an increased national focus on campaigns and elections, from the presidential race, to congressional elections and state elections. Whatever the source of news coverage, you’ve likely noticed the saturation of coverage on debates, speeches, town halls, and Sunday morning news hours that revolve around the GOP primaries and caucuses as they take to the task of choosing a nominee.

ASCE is a 501(c)(3) organization, and does not support or oppose any candidate for political office. Nevertheless, one thing that has become obvious is that there has been an increasing amount of discussion across the spectrum about the need to invest in our nation’s infrastructure. It seems that the general public, and increasingly the candidates for local and national offices, understand that infrastructure is a pocketbook issue. More citizens are tired of wasting their time (and money) in congested traffic.  ASCE’s recent water economic study noted a projected  $147 billion in increased costs to businesses by 2020 because of our aging and inadequate water infrastructure.

The following headline appeared in a Politico story last week: “Candidates steer clear of transportation before Iowa” appearances (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0112/71028.html). However, the headline doesn’t tell the full story. While these candidates haven’t been using transportation as a key facet of their platform, they are getting asked about it on the campaign trail. It is this sort of attention from citizens and the news media that encourages current and prospective public officials to bring their plans and ideas about infrastructure into open discussion.

The fact that local citizens are routinely raising concerns about infrastructure needs in town hall meetings and other candidate appearances highlights how ASCE’s hard work on raising the discussion of infrastructure nationwide is paying dividends.  This focus is also the result of an on-going project by Building America’s Future to engage citizens in New Hampshire and South Carolina to talk about infrastructure.

Building America’s Future has created a webpage to compile and aggregate what candidates are saying about infrastructure (http://www.bafuture.org/GopDecision2012). It is intended to serve as a one-stop-shop for readers to review public comments made by candidates and elected officials regarding infrastructure investment and reforms. It houses current and past video, audio, and news articles ranging from transportation to broadband, and everything in between. They’ve also compiled an audit of mentions and policy positions from candidate websites, with an emphasis on educating the public on the range of ideas and suggestions proposed for addressing this important topic.

Regardless of whether the country is in an election year, ASCE believes that it is essential for the needs of America’s infrastructure to remain at the forefront of the conversation. Investing in transportation and infrastructure, especially when it’s needed so badly, is one of the surest ways to shore up an economy. We hope you’ll use our latest research and infographics at www.asce.org/failuretoact, as well as other materials available through ASCE and like organizations, to take part in driving informed conversation about infrastructure issues and to make addressing America’s infrastructure challenges a priority issue in the coming year and beyond.

ASCE is a 501(c)(3) organization, and does not support or oppose any political candidate, party, or platform. The information provided herein is for general information only, and should not be interpreted as an endorsement of any political party or campaign. An informed decision on a legislator’s performance should be based on all aspects of the individual’s work, such as performance on committees and constituent service, not merely the legislator’s votes on a few select issues.

Another year. That’s what 2011 was. It wasn’t a year where compromise was forged, where national interests were made paramount, or where facts took the front seat to spin and brinkmanship. Instead, Congress is at an all-time low approval rating of 11%, the presidential field (from any direction) is a mess, and the problems that plagued us in 2010 are still very much present going into 2012.

However, we also achieved a lot in spite of this political gridlock. Through our advocacy efforts and the input from ASCE members, we fought tirelessly for the repeal of the 3% Withholding Tax.  In the past six months, we have released two major studies showing the critical link between deficient transportation and water infrastructure and America’s economic future.

We now have a near consensus in the Senate and the House of Representatives that investing in transportation and our infrastructure is a problem that needs to be solved now, and not later. Across the board we have seen bipartisan proposals that seek to bridge the spending gap and recognize that working across the aisle is the only way to get the job done. There is no Republican or Democratic way to build a bridge. This was showcased recently by the 111 Democrats and Republicans in the House who wrote a letter to Speaker Boehner urging a long-term spending bill to adequately fund America’s failing infrastructure. If we push even harder next year, the possibility is very real that we can get a multi-year transportation bill that adequately funds the highways, roads, and bridges that we use and often take for granted every day.

So looking forward, what can be done to make 2012 different than 2011? Well, first off we’ve got new economic reports coming out focused on the state of America’s energy transmission infrastructure as well as marine and air ports. The information provided will round out previous economic studies we’ve released in the Failure to Act serious and put us on track to release the 2013 Report Card.

From everyone at ASCE, happy holidays. We hope you enjoy the season and the festivities, and we’re looking forward to working for a safer, more reliable, and economically sound future in 2012.

ASCE is releasing a report today identifying the long-term consequences to the nation’s economy from failing to invest today in our aging drinking water and wastewater infrastructure. The report is the second in a four part series of economic studies assessing the impacts of continued underinvestment in the nation’s infrastructure systems.

The report, Failure to Act: The Economic Impact of Current Investment Trends in Water and Wastewater Treatment Infrastructure, answers the question of how the condition of the nation’s deteriorating wastewater and drinking water infrastructure impinges on economic prosperity of American jobs, businesses, and entire sectors of the economy. In other words, how does a D- for water treatment identified ASCE’s 2009 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure affect America’s economic future? The report’s results are sobering.

Water infrastructure in the United States is aging, and investments have not kept pace with the escalating costs. In fact, the report finds that by 2020, the US will have fallen $84 billion short of the investments needed in our critical water systems. Even with the increased use of sustainable practices and cost-effective development of other efficiency  methods, the growing gap between capital needs to maintain drinking-water and wastewater treatment infrastructure and investments to meet those needs will likely result in unreliable water service and inadequate wastewater treatment. However, if we close that gap and invest in our water infrastructure, we can prevent the following impacts by 2020:

• $59 billion in increased costs to households
• $147 billion in increased costs to businesses
• $416 billion in lost Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
• Loss of 700,000 jobs

This past Tuesday, ASCE President-Elect, Greg DiLoreto P.E., M.ASCE, and chief executive officer for the publicly owned Tualatin Valley Water District in the Portland, Oregon area, introduced some of the report results to Congress when he testified before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee  on the nation’s water infrastructure. After speaking before the Committee, ASCE released the Executive Summary of the report in order for staff to have additional background on the upcoming full report.

Also this week, ASCE has held a series of briefings for water infrastructure stakeholders and Congressional staff.  ASCE will lead webinars for all members interested in more details on the report in early 2012.

Since the beginning of our current economic downturn, pundits and armchair historians alike have compared the modern United States to the Roman Empire shortly before its decline. I usually change the channel or flip to the next page when I read such headlines, because to put it plainly – the US is not Rome. I chalk it up to a case of playing on people’s fears to attract viewers or sell books, and go about my day. However, there are similarities between the two, and the good news is, unfortunately for Rome, we can learn from their expense.

We all know what happened to the great and vast Roman Empire. It came to its height, in part, because of its vast and advanced transportation and infrastructure network. Its army was efficient in many ways, but part of the ferocity that struck fear in the enemies of Rome was the speed at which its fighting force could travel on the roads they built. Trade across the empire

Roman Street in Pompeii

was considered reliable and consistent because of the costs the Romans bore in order to ensure a working transportation system. Even today, Roman roads are still used by Europeans. In fact, an Aqueduct in the Spanish town of Segovia had been used to provide water until only recently. Alas, Rome fell for a number of unique and specific reasons, but the beginning of the end of the Roman Empire paralleled closely with the rapid decline in its infrastructure.

At ASCE we are committed to efficient, sustainable, and smart infrastructure development and work to include and educate lawmakers in our federal, state, and local governments on the imperatives we are facing. As with any issue that impacts the well being of our future, the old adage of “those who forget history are doomed to repeat” can be applied to the many ways in which we seek to advance  the quality of our nation’s roads, bridges, dams, etc. We have the distinct benefit of being able to look back into our history and learn from the lessons of previous civilizations. As we begin our efforts to release ASCE’s 2013 Report Card on America’s Infrastructure, we should also ready ourselves to finally tackle the problems facing our nation’s declining network of transportation and infrastructure.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee released their long awaited two year surface transportation authorization bill this week. The bill, Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21^st Century or MAP-21, maintains current levels of investment plus inflation for fiscal years 2012 and 2013, while making significant reforms to the current program. The full Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will be marking up the legislation tomorrow morning and ASCE sent a letter to Committee Members today urging their support.

The reforms included in MAP-21 allow for the nation’s surface transportation program to move forward. Consolidating the 90 programs into 30, creating a National Freight Network Program, expediting project delivery, creating reasonable performance measures, and enhancing the TIFIA program are all steps that will allow for a stronger, more results-oriented transportation program.

The legislation also reduces the core highway programs from seven to five, which include three new core programs and two existing programs. The new programs include a National Highway Performance Program, a Transportation Mobility Program, and a National Freight Network Program; while the remaining programs are the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program and the Highway Safety Improvement Program. Other positive reforms include a new title, called “America Fast Forward”, which strengthens the TIFIA program by increasing funding to $1 billion per year; while Title 1 takes steps to improve the existing highway bridge inspection program and authorizes a national tunnel inspection program. The bill also establishes an outcome-driven approach that tracks performance and will hold states and metropolitan planning organizations accountable for improving the conditions and performance of their transportation needs, which ASCE has supported in the past.

ASCE is looking forward to working with Members of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee to move the MAP-21 legislation through the 112^th Congress. The nation’s surface transportation needs in the 2009 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure (www.infrastructurereportcard.org) totaled $1.2 billion, while ASCE’s latest economic study on surface transportation displays the effects that the network has on the nation’s economic competitiveness.

For more information on the economic study, Failure to Act: the Economic Impact of Current Investment Trends in Surface Transportation, please visit our website. www.asce.org/economicstudy

In 1947, the home of Francis Scott Key, author of the “Star Spangled Banner”, was set to be demolished after several unsuccessful bids to restore it by the historic community of Georgetown. The home of the poet and patriot was eventually leveled, but after many years the Francis Scott Key Bridge was erected to span the Potomac and connect Rosslyn with Washington DC, serving as both a major artery for transportation and commerce as well as a memorial to the father of our national anthem.

President Obama delivers his speech in front of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Washington

Now, 80 years after its completion in 1923, the bridge has been deemed structurally deficient by the Department of Transportation and is one of the thousands of decrepit bridges that the American Society of Civil Engineers says has earned America a “C” on the national status of our bridges. More currently, it was also the backdrop of a speech President Obama gave last Wednesday about the need for sustained infrastructure funding and the potential, according to a recent Forbes article, to create 27 million new jobs if adequately invested. In addition, the president also outlined his plan to expedite the flow of cash to shovel-ready projects that will fix our failing infrastructure and put Americans back to work.

Having the ability to enjoy a beautiful morning and hear the President of the United States cite ASCE’s work and quote from our studies was a definitive reward, and a reminder that we provide powerful tools and information for our leaders in business and government. If you’d like to keep up on transportation and infrastructure related news and noteworthy items, you can follow us on Facebook and Twitter and ASCE members should join the Key Contact Program.

As we move closer into the 2012 election year and inevitable spin zone and misinformation festival that will ensue, I’ll end with a quote from Ronald Reagan, which President Obama quoted in his speech yesterday:

“The bridges and highways we fail to repair today will have to be rebuilt tomorrow at many times the cost.”

The 2.2 trillion dollars ASCE estimates is required over 5 years to update and repair our infrastructure is the fulfillment of this prophecy. The longer we wait to pull our act together and agree, the more we will have to pay to address our infrastructure needs.

Congressional offices are receiving more constituent mail than ever, and reallocating staff resources to deal with the increasing volume according to a new report out this week from the Congressional Management Foundation.

The report, entitled “How Citizen Advocacy is Changing Mail Operations on Capitol Hill”, is part of CMF’s “Communicating with Congress” series and identifies some significant trends in constituent communications, including a continued rise in the number of messages sent by constituents to lawmakers on Capitol Hill and how offices are dealing with this increase in communication volume.

View the report  

Among the report’s key findings:

• Mail volume in congressional offices continues to increase exponentially.
• Congressional offices are using email to reply to constituent email.
• Constituent communications are consuming more time from congressional offices.
• Constituent mail is taking a significant amount of time to respond to whether or not there is a prepared text available.

What does all this mean for the average Key Contact?  Increasing constituent mail can be considered a positive thing – more citizens are engaging their elected officials on issues.  However, it means that it is more important than ever to concentrate on your message to be sure yours rises to the top above all the other loads of “form letters” your lawmakers’ offices receive.  ASCE members who use our Click & Connect with Congress advocacy website should take the time to add your own personal perspective as a civil engineer and resident of your region or state to the form messages that ASCE provides.  This provides information your lawmaker can’t get anywhere else, and will help distinguish your message from the rest.

As the volume of constituent communications continues to rise, Congressional budgets are being squeezed, just like all other parts of government (and much of the private sector as well.)  This means responding to communications will only get more challenging for Congressional offices with limited staff, and response times may lengthen.  Key Contacts should be patient, but persistent, when communicating with their lawmakers.

Tags: congress, Congressional Management Foundation, grassroots, key contact program