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Subject: Rep. Mineta Urges Full Funding for $151 Billion Highway Bill<By Don
Date: Fri, 20 Nov 92 04:42:00 EST
Message-ID: <39.1992Nov20.044200@AmeriCast.com>

Rep. Mineta Urges Full Funding for $151 Billion Highway Bill<By
Don Phillips<Washington Post Staff Writer=

Rep. Norman Y. Mineta (D-Calif.), in line to be chairman of the
House Public Works and Transportation Committee next year, said
yesterday the centerpiece of an economic stimulus package should
be a quick infusion of funds for ready-to-go transportation pro-
jects, to be financed through deficit spending.

Mineta said that a consensus already has developed in Congress
and among interest groups and the Clinton camp that the first
element of the package should be full funding of the $151 billion
highway-transit bill that passed Congress last year but was
chopped back in subsequent appropriations legislation.

Beyond that, his ideas amount to more spending on work-a-day pro-
jects that immediately would put people to work, such as highway
repair, and acceleration of already-approved projects.  Mineta's
speech clearly placed him on one side in a debate over whether a
stimulus package must involve increased debt or whether money
must be found elswhere in the budget to pay for at least part of
it.

"Obviously, a short-term stimulus will mean an increase in the
deficit," he said, but added that any deficit spending would be
temporary until economic demand increases.  President-elect Clin-
ton has said that infrastructure will be at the core of his
stimulus package. He has held out the possibility of new taxes on
the wealthy to help pay for this and other programs, but has been
vague on whether he would increase the deficit.

His advisers are looking at a number of options, including a
shift of funds from the Defense Department.

Mineta, who will play a key role in shaping Clinton's infrastruc-
ture programs, outlined his ideas for the economic stimulus pack-
age in a speech to a New York transportation conference sponsored
by Salomon Brothers.

Mineta issued a warning against any attempts to load up the bill
with special projects.  "Anyone who believes this is simply a
blind invitation to long-frustrated Democrats to unveil all the
old programs of their past and to revel in the release of pent-up
partisan frustrations has badly misread the electorate." The
Clinton economic team has made no final decisions on the elements
of a stimulus package.

Among other possibilities for the remainder of the package, Mine-
ta said, would be allowing states and cities to use federal funds
for a part of their required local matching shares for highway
and transit projects.

"There are other existing programs that offer a potential for
temporary surges in spending," he said. "A transportation example
is the airport grants program. An example of non-transportation
infrastructure are wastewater treatment facilities and related
pipe projects.

In each of of these areas, we should create components of the
economic package which take needed projects, which will be built
under any circumstances, and accelerate them forward into the
near term."

Mineta said he also expected Clinton's program to include tech-
nology research and development and training initiatives, partic-
ularly training of defense-related workers to take new jobs in
the civilian sector of the economy.<02:31 11-20C9999-----

Copyright 1992, The Washington Post.  This story is from the
Washington Post's Capitol Edition On-Line and is not to be ar-
chived or redistributed.

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