Senator Vitter,

As one of your constituents, I'd like a clarification on your position concerning the $45 million TIGER award grant that the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority received yesterday via the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Specifically, since you characterize certain allotments of the ARRA or "stimulus" funds as wasteful, does that mean you were against awarding the New Orleans RTA with a grant that fully funds the building of the Union Passenger Terminal - Loyola Loop streetcar line?

Additionally, are you in favor of federal funding of flood control levees in your district but against building levees outside your district?

I ask because the $54 million award you referenced today in your email titled "Happy Stimulus Anniversary Taxpayers!" was designated for the construction of a flood wall and related improvements for the Napa River Flood Control Project, not the Wine Train.

I hope you are in favor of the $45 million award to the RTA. Running from New Orleans' Amtrak/Greyhound terminal to Canal Street, the new streetcar line will connect with the existing, historic Canal St & St. Charles Ave (as well as the Riverfront) streetcar lines. Since the grant requires the RTA to complete the streetcar line within 2 years, this vital & new transit link will soon be transporting locals and tourists to work and play, spurring faster redevelopment of vacant high rise properties downtown such as the old Hyatt Regency Hotel, Plaza Towers, Charity Hospital and a variety of other large structures in the Central Business District that are still vacant almost 5 years after Katrina.

Regards,

Larry Lagarde
RideTHISbike.com
Practical & Fun Bicycles That Fold For Storage, Travel & Convenience

Happy Stimulus Anniversary Taxpayers!

Dear Friend,
One year ago, over my strong opposition, President Obama and liberals in Congress passed the $1.1 trillion "stimulus" for our economy.  At the time unemployment was at 7.7 percent, and a year later it has unfortunately increased to 9.7 percent.
The stimulus was packed full of wasteful pork barrel spending that has nothing to do with stimulating our economy. 
Here are just a few small examples of egregious waste that our money was spent on:

1. $250 stimulus checks went to thousands of convicted felons while still being held in prison.
2. $390,000 to study people who consume malt liquor and marijuana went to The State University Of New York At Buffalo.
3. $1 million to renovate Sunset Boulevard, or "the Sunset Strip" was given to the City of West Hollywood Council.
4. $54 million went to the Napa Valley wine train.

These projects are hardly the type of stimulus we were promised and are typical of the waste and government growth we've seen this past year.  That is why I offered an amendment to the stimulus to cut $40 billion in waste like this and why I joined a majority of our Congressional delegation in voting against the stimulus.
We need to change the focus away from bloated federal spending and away from borrowing or issuing new debt for which the next generation is responsible.
I've introduced the No Cost Stimulus with the specific goal of stimulating the economy by creating jobs, freeing up domestic resources for U.S. citizens, and streamlining regulatory review processes that have choked U.S. business and development.  My bill would increase our oil and gas production and create two million long-term, sustainable and well paying jobs.
I'll keep fighting for commonsense proposals like this and to turn the corner to control exploding federal spending and debt.
 

Sincerely,

David Vitter
U.S. Senator

Labels: Senator-Vitter, US-Econimic-Stimulus-Bill

by Larry Lagarde

The Economic Stimulus Bill passed today by Congress includes substantial funding for transportation; yet, it's possible that virtually all the transportation funds will go towards building more freeways. If you'd like to see a portion of the Stimulus funds going towards shovel ready bicycle projects, I suggest you read the following appeals and take action.

From the executive director at the National Center for Bicycling & Walking:

Today, Wednesday, February 11, 2009, members of Congress reconciled the House and Senate versions of The Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Act, more popularly known as the Economic Stimulus Bill. As you are likely aware, the economic stimulus bill has generated a tremendous amount of political hyperbole—both in favor of and against its passage. However, there are now three simple facts that remain: 1) the bill has passed both chambers; 2) very soon $800 billion will be allocated by Congress; and 3) a significant percentage of that amount will be devoted to transportation projects.

Making sure that the needs of pedestrians and bicyclists are looked after once the stimulus funding is disbursed to the states is now the primary concern of the National Center for Bicycling & Walking. We believe that the best way to ensure that this happens is to support the House bill which requires that 45 percent of transportation funding go through the Surface Transportation Program formula, which will preserve funding for the Transportation Enhancements program.

NCBW believes that this is the best compromise towards ensuring that bicycle-pedestrian projects are built by the state DOTs, that public accountability for transportation spending is maintained, and that transportation spending conforms to the will of the American people, as expressed in Congress’s passage of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act in 1991 and subsequent reauthorizations.

If you are ready to take action now, please follow this link to the League of American Bicyclists’ website.
http://tinyurl.com/al4y88

If you would like to learn more about America Bikes Collation’s stance on the Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Act, please follow this link to our website.
http://www.bikewalk.org/economic_recovery.php

Sincerely,

Sharon Z. Roerty, AICP/PP
Executive Director
National Center for Bicycling & Walking

Join The America Bikes Coalition to Protect Transportation Enhancement Funding

The House and the Senate have each passed their own version of the Economic Recovery Bill, aimed at creating jobs and stimulating the economy. Both bills include billions for transportation infrastructure, but only the House bill includes funding for bicycle and pedestrian projects in the Transportation Enhancements program.

The House Bill includes approximately $1.35 billion for Transportation Enhancements of which 50-60% is traditionally spent on bicycle and pedestrian projects. The Senate Bill does not explicitly include Transportation Enhancements, so its unclear whether this funding will be in the final bill.

This week there will be a conference committee where several members of the House and several members of the Senate will work together to reconcile the two bills. Conferees need to hear that Transportation Enhancements are important to stimulating the economy, creating green jobs, and moving us towards a sustainable future.

Please call your Senators and Representative and urge them to tell the Conferees to support Transportation Enhancements in the Economic Recovery bill.

Calling All Bicyclists and Pedestrians! Please Take Action Today!

Thanks to calls from bicyclist and pedestrian advocates like you, the Senate refused to hear an amendment that would have blocked any Economic Recovery Bill money from being spent on biking and walking infrastructure projects. Now we need EVERYONE’S HELP to make certain that there is strong support for Transportation Enhancements $ for biking and walking in the final bill!

Support Bicycle and Pedestrian Projects in the Economic Recovery Bill

The House and the Senate have each passed their own version of the Economic Recovery Bill, aimed at creating jobs and stimulating the economy. Both bills include billions for transportation infrastructure, but only the House bill includes funding for bicycle and pedestrian projects in the Transportation Enhancements program. The House bill includes approximately $1.35 billion for Transportation Enhancements of which 50-60% is traditionally spent on bicycle and pedestrian projects. The Senate bill does not explicitly include Transportation Enhancements, so it’s unclear whether this funding will be in the final bill.

We need to make sure Transportation Enhancement funding is in the final bill.

This week there will be a conference committee where several members of the House and several members of the Senate will work together to reconcile the two bills. Conferees need to hear that Transportation Enhancements are important to stimulating the economy, creating green jobs, and moving us towards a sustainable future.

CALL TODAY! (link to the league’s advocacy center)

Please call your senators and representative and ask them to tell the Conferees to support Transportation Enhancements in the Economic Recovery bill. Tell them:

- Bicycle and pedestrian projects create jobs at the same or better rate than highway projects.
- These smaller projects can move quickly to hire local businesses and help local economies.
- Providing safe and convenient bicycle and pedestrian access gives families healthier and cheaper transportation options.
- Improving sidewalks and bike lanes can make a downtown a destination further helping the local economy.
- Better biking and walking options also help ensure greater energy independence, less pollution, and a healthier United States!

This is not a time to build [bike paths]. If we are going to invest in infrastructure, invest in infrastructure that actually makes the economy more efficient, such as roads that are needed.
-Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.), Saturday, Feb. 7, 2009

Dear Cyclist,

Comments like those above are misguided. Please act now for active transportation funding.

Along with others, like Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), who offered an amendment to prohibit funding for walking and bicycling, Sen. Ensign does not realize that more trails means people walk and bike more and drive less. This translates into less congestion, healthier people, a healthier planet, more money available to our communities, and much, much more.

Moments ago, the U.S. Senate passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan. Unlike the House of Representatives’ version of the bill, the Senate did not explicitly fund Transportation Enhancements (TE), the nation’s primary funding source for active transportation.

However, the Senate and House will work to reconcile their differences “in conference” over the next few days.

We must convince the Senate to protect TE in conference.

Please go here to get started.

This is exciting, because we know we can make an impact: After more than 15,000 of us signed Rails-to-Trails Conservancy’s (RTC) petition to Congress and the president to explicitly fund active transportation in the recovery package, the House allocated $1.35 billion for TE.

Please give a few minutes of your time-I promise, together we can make a difference.

Thank you so much.

Kevin Mills,
Vice-President of Policy,
Rails-to-Trails Conservancy

As you can see, there is unified concern among bicycling advocates that Stimulus funds will be steered away from worthy cycling projects. I cannot stress the importance of letting your voice be heard. Please take action and contact your federal representatives.

LL

Labels: US-Econimic-Stimulus-Bill