Merkley Statement on Failed Transportation Vote

Oregon's Senator explains why the "NO" vote was necessary.

Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley Photo: http://www.merkley.senate.gov/

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley released the following statement after he and a bipartisan majority of Senators voted against an attempt to bring a 1,000 page transportation bill to the floor less than an hour after it had been released:

"After months of stalling on putting forward a solution to a looming transportation crisis, it’s unacceptable to suddenly force a vote on 1,000 page legislation with no time for Senators to read the bill or evaluate how it will impact major national policy that affects every state and every community across the country.

"We have a huge, dangerous transportation infrastructure deficit that will only grow without national action.

"That means we need to do much more to invest in the roads, bridges, transit systems, and other infrastructure that create good jobs and are the building blocks of our future economy.

"The way to do that is to engage in a serious and bipartisan debate about our transportation needs and ways to pay for it, not to try to push through last-minute, long-term legislation crafted behind closed doors."