The Chamber

Transportation infrastructure is crucial to economic development opportunities, as well as maintaining our quality of life.  The Lubbock Chamber of Commerce is actively promoting several transportation projects that provide our member businesses with access to markets.

• Support more equitable and flexible distribution of federal transportation funds and Passenger Facility Charge (PFC) funds and an increase to the PFC.
• Support Ports-to-Plains efforts, especially a proposed pilot program for streamlined transport of overweight and oversize equipment along the Ports-to-Plains Corridor, Heartland Expressway and Theodore Roosevelt Expressway. This would provide uniform size and weight restrictions and streamlined permitting throughout the corridor.
• Support implementation of airline safety measures in a manner that is safe, while not unnecessarily burdensome to the airline industry or that would discourage travel.
• Support coalition efforts to improve freight rail service in West Texas.  From a more  long-range standpoint, improving freight rail also would allow Lubbock to consider a less-immediate but still important opportunity for eventual passenger rail access.
• Support U.S. Chamber of Commerce efforts to address long-term infrastructure needs through the Let’s Rebuild America initiative.

Transportation-General

• Remove obstacles to private investment in infrastructure capacity and promote      policies to streamline project delivery.
• Ensure adequate public sector investments guided by effective policies and      programs.
• Ensure that the funding commitments made in SAFETEA-LU, the federal surface transportation law, are kept.
• Permanently fix the Highway Trust Fund. 
• Build on recent findings and recommendations of the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Commission.
• Advocate a greater emphasis on economic needs and issues in formulating national transportation policies, plans and programs.
• Support greater emphasis on national freight transportation program investments that would implement highway, rail, and marine transportation improvements to benefit commerce.
• Advocate for increasing overall public investment in infrastructure using all potential revenue sources, including user fees and other revenues collected at      different level of government.
• Advocate for increased use of financing and credit options, including tax credits and public-private partnerships, to leverage private capital.
• Support current Metropolitan Planning Organization criteria and structure in the U.S.

Lubbock International Airport & Aviation

• Increased flexibility in the way that the Federal PFC dollars are spent will allow airports to invest in projects that will create an additional revenue stream.
• Transportation Security Administration (TSA) – Continue to press for legislation that will allow non ticketed passengers through the security checkpoint.  Increased traffic flow to vendors inside the secure area will positively impact the revenue generated by these businesses which will benefit the airports. 
• Advocate for Congress to complete reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration and the Airway and Airports Trust Fund and include an increase to the PFC maximum collection from $4.50 to $7.50.
• Encourage federal policies that recognize the link between our nation’s aviation network and jobs, economic development, global competitiveness, quality of life and national security.
• Encourage Congress and the Administration to expedite air traffic modernization and invest in greater aviation system capacity to meet an expected doubling in aviation traffic over the next 10 years.

Public Transportation

• Support H.R. 3545 which would allow for Operating Assistance for Urbanized Areas (UZAs) with Less Than 100 Peak Hour Buses.  Public transportation systems in urbanized areas of more than 200,000 population which operate less than 100 buses in peak operation should be authorized to use 50% of FTA Section 5307 formula funds for operating purposes. 

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