July 29, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 128 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session

[Pages S5135-S5136]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           EXECUTIVE CALENDAR

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the nomination.
  The legislative clerk read the nomination of Peter D. Welte, of North 
Dakota, to be United States District Judge for the District of North 
Dakota.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Lankford). The Senator from Indiana.


                             Infrastructure

  Mr. BRAUN. Mr. President, I rise today to congratulate Chairman 
Barrasso and Ranking Member Carper on their introduction of the EPW 
Committee's 5-year infrastructure bill, the America's highway 
infrastructure act.
  Back in Indiana, as a member of the State Legislature, in 2017 we did 
what some States are doing and many haven't yet. We actually did a 
long-term road funding and bridge infrastructure bill. As a Main Street 
entrepreneur there in just my third year in the State Legislature, we 
accomplished things that nobody said could get done, because we made 
the case that for the crossroads of America, we needed to make sure our 
roads and bridges were going to be there in safe shape for future 
generations.
  No matter where I go, I hear almost everyone unanimously wanting 
better roads and bridges. Ironically, even in a State like the Hoosier 
State, 70 percent of constituents wanted better roads but didn't want 
their taxes to go up. We had to make the case--and it wasn't hard for 
me to do as a fiscal conservative--that if you are in a State like 
Indiana and your comparative advantage is the crossroads of America, 
why wouldn't you want a tangible asset to be in good shape that 
everyone can enjoy?
  We also did it from a position of strength. We run a balanced budget, 
generally with a surplus every year, and we passed a balance budget 
amendment. So it was not difficult to talk about investing in the 
future when you were doing it from a position of strength. In fact, 
this last year, we had almost a $400 million surplus and a cash balance 
of over $2 billion. Wouldn't it be nice if this place worked like that?
  The bill introduced provides $287 billion to fix the Nation's aging 
roads and bridges--more than any bill in history. It includes new 
safety programs to incentivize States to lower fatalities of drivers 
and pedestrians. It codifies key elements of President Trump's ``One 
Federal Decision'' to cut redtape and to reduce the time that road 
projects spend in the permitting line. It instructs Federal highways to 
address resiliency, making sure that when a road is damaged by a 
natural disaster, we rebuild it with modern technology that will 
prevent similar damage in the future.
  Most importantly, it contains incentives to urge States to put more 
skin in the game, just like we did in Indiana, taking ownership of 
their own infrastructure and making sure that in

[[Page S5136]]

States where balance sheets are clean and economies are healthy, they 
don't look to the Federal Government to lead on it and they lead 
themselves.
  This bill contains a proposal I introduced last week called the 
Crossroads of America Act, to provide $150 million that will be 
competitively awarded to States that will bid for the highest State 
match for Federal dollars. This concept worked for us in Indiana. We 
called it the Community Crossings Program, and within 1 or 2 years, 
even after there was much complaining by cities and counties, it is 
oversubscribed. Instead of sitting on the sidelines, Indiana 
communities started to bid up their matches and asking for less State 
money through the program. Wouldn't it be nice if we had something like 
that here to stretch the Federal dollar?
  It means that the State could approve a greater number of projects, 
which we have done now into the third year. More projects are being 
built. More concrete is being poured. More steel is being framed. And 
more Hoosiers are on the job. This is why this program is so important.
  Combined, the America's highway infrastructure act will allow more 
projects to break ground, like our I-69 bridge over the Ohio River, 
linking northern Kentucky to southern Indiana. The EPW bill will speed 
up the permitting process and provide funding opportunities to a 
project that has been in the works for more than 15 years.
  Over the next several weeks, we will continue our robust committee 
work, starting with a markup of the chairman's bill tomorrow in EPW. In 
committee, I will stress the importance of fully paying for this 5-year 
bill--again, unlike we do most things here--and putting the highway 
trust fund on a pathway to long-term solvency.
  We are also going to be considering a budget bill, and for all the 
reasons that we know, the Federal Government should be there for its 
own citizens, its stakeholders, including infrastructure. We need to 
make sure, regardless of what happens to this budget bill, that in the 
long run we start balancing our own budget and that we quit borrowing 
from future generations and kicking this stuff down the road. 
Hopefully, this infrastructure bill will be the beginning of it.
  Over 37 years of building a business in my hometown, one principle I 
have always lived by is this: When times are good, you create a rainy 
day fund, you pay back what you might have borrowed, and you sacrifice 
in the short run for long-term prosperity. Until we get back into that 
mentality here--whether its infrastructure, shoring up entitlements, or 
whatever people depend on the Federal Government to do--we are not 
going to be there for our own citizens.
  Today, that changes with the introduction of America's highway 
infrastructure act. We are beginning to put our Nation's highway system 
on a path of long-term solvency. The alternative, I am afraid, is 
another unfunded short-term reauthorization of the highway trust fund. 
Such a path would be irresponsible, especially after the highway bill 
comes out of committee this week.
  We must continue investing in our Nation's infrastructure. We must 
incentivize States to get more involved, and we must fully offset our 
spending and put the highway trust fund on a responsible path to long-
term solvency. That is one of the critical obligations facing this 
Congress.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senate majority leader.

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