States See Extension Of Transportation Aid.

The clock is ticking for the federal highway program and the construction firms that rely on it. State transportation agencies are anxiously keeping one eye on the U.S. Congress, hoping lawmakers will avert a cutoff of federal highway funds looming on September 30, 2003. That deadline stems from the 1998 Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century. The massive bill that has pumped more than $220 billion into highway and transit programs since its 1998 enactment expires on that date. In addition, if no extension is enacted, it would inflict pain on FHWA itself. What states, the U.S. DOT and engineering and construction firms really desire is a new, six-year transportation measure that assures a sizable boost in federal aid over TEA-21's.