Transportation bill would let states make most spending decisions

U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) and U.S. Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) introduced the Transportation Empowerment Act in both chambers of Congress on Wednesday.

The bill would shift a large portion of decision-making power  over transportation funding to individual states. Under the bill, the federal government's role in transportation funding would be greatly reduced, and the federal gas tax would be cut to 3.7 cents per gallon over a period of five years. It is currently 18.3 cents per gallon.

“The Transportation Empowerment Act will give states the power to determine their own road map for transportation policy while largely eliminating Washington’s role as a bureaucratic middleman," DeSantis said. "Florida knows best which bridges are lacking repair or where road construction is most needed, not out-of-state members of Congress or federal bureaucrats.”

Under this bill, the federal government would continue to maintain national projects and Interstate highways. The states would be left with most of the decision-making process and would be responsible for developing the means to acquire funding for their state-specific projects.