| | | | |  | | By Tanya Snyder and Oriana Pawlyk | | | With help from Hannah Pinski
| | — The House returns this week to appropriations chaos, a shutdown threat and an FAA bill in need of an extension, while work languishes on automated vehicles and rail safety. — Four days to go before a possible UAW strike. — FAA wants to task an advisory committee with coming up with a solution to the spate of near misses. IT’S MONDAY: You’re reading Morning Transportation, your Washington policy guide to everything that moves. Alex is back today, so tell him you missed him and send him your tips: adaugherty@politico.com. You can reach Oriana, Tanya and Hannah at opawlyk@politico.com, tsnyder@politico.com and hpinski@politico.com, respectively. Find us all on the platform formerly known as Twitter @alextdaugherty, @TSnyderDC, @oriana0214 and @HannahPinski. “When I’m out walking / I strut my stuff / and I’m so strung out.”
| | | | A message from Freight Rail Works: What’s the safest way to move goods over land? It’s freight rail. Thanks to new technologies and a culture of safety powered by our 135,000 employees, we’ve reduced mainline accidents by 44% since 2000. Explore how we’re continuing to innovate in safety right here. | | | Want to receive this newsletter every weekday? Subscribe to POLITICO Pro. You’ll also receive daily policy news and other intelligence you need to act on the day’s biggest stories.
| | THE HOUSE IS BACK IN TOWN: The House of Representatives gavels back into session this week, returning to a shorter but chaotic month that will be dominated by efforts to come to a bipartisan, bicameral consensus on appropriations in time to avert a government shutdown after Sept. 30. (The House so far has passed just one of 12 spending bills.) What else expires Sept. 30? The current FAA authorization, of course. The House passed its version, H.R. 3935 (118), in July but the Senate is still stalled over disagreements on pilot training. An extension will undoubtedly be needed, and a continuing resolution is a likely vehicle. But if House conservatives play hardball, as advertised, and a CR isn’t enacted in time to avoid a government shutdown, that could have implications for the FAA’s authorities, too. — Here’s your general reminder that most surface transportation programs in the 2021 infrastructure law were funded with advance appropriations, an act of foresight for which the industry will have cause to thank Congress for years to come. AV check-in: Despite pledges to the contrary, efforts at the House Energy and Commerce Committee to come up with a bipartisan framework on autonomous vehicles seems as stalled as ever, with staff tight-lipped about negotiations. Rep. Debbie Dingell’s (D-Mich.) office said Dingell “continues to work closely” with Rep. Bob Latta (R-Ohio) to draft a bill. From what we are hearing from lobbyists, it doesn’t sound like much has happened on this front. — Meanwhile, the House Transportation Committee is taking its own swing at autonomous vehicles, holding a hearing this week on autonomous trucking. (Jurisdiction reminder: Vehicle technology is under the purview of E&C but anything over 10,000 pounds has to be handled in T&I.) Rail safety: Seven months after the East Palestine derailment, the House Transportation Committee still has not held a hearing on the derailment, despite calls from Democrats. Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-Pa.), sponsor of the House companion, H.R. 1674 (118), to the bill moving through the Senate, S. 576 (118), held a press conference in Darlington Township, Pa. — right across the border from East Palestine — on Friday to renew his call for House action.
| | Join us on Sept. 12 at POLITICO Live’s next event for exclusive conversations on how the tourism and travel industries are adapting for the post-pandemic recovery, what pressures remain, and how Washington can help. We’ll begin with a keynote interview with Rep. Rick Larsen (D-Wash.), ranking member of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, followed by an expert panel discussion with Mary Kay Henry, international president, SEIU; Ellen Davis, executive vice president, U.S. Travel Association; and Wesley Espinosa, interim executive director of the Center for Responsible Travel. Find more information about Business or Pleasure: Into the Age of the New Traveler, here. | | | | STRIKE WATCH: Also dominating this week is the countdown to the Sept. 14 deadline by which the United Autoworkers union could strike. So far the union has not greeted the Big 3 car companies’ opening wage proposals with much enthusiasm — UAW President Shawn Fain on Friday called them “shameful and insulting” and “deeply inadequate.” Meanwhile, the saber-rattling about a possible strike — affecting up to 150,000 auto workers — has gotten only louder. If 11:59 p.m. on Thursday arrives without an agreement, “there will be a strike — at all three [companies] if need be,” Fain said. The union got 99.5 percent approval in a strike authorization vote last month.
| | NEW POSSIBILITIES: The FAA on Friday said it wants one of its advisory rulemaking committees to come up with suggestions for cockpit systems to alert pilots when they turn onto the wrong runway or taxiway, among other potential mistakes, in order to reduce the chances of runway mishaps, Oriana reports. The request follows an uptick of near misses earlier this year that prompted the FAA and NTSB to hold two safety briefings on the episodes. Get thinking: David Boulter, FAA’s associate administrator for aviation safety, on Friday sent a letter to the safety chiefs at Airlines for America and the Air Line Pilots Association stating the committee must “explore requiring new technologies that will get us closer” to zero close calls on runways. Airlines for America, which did not address the request directly, said in a statement it will continue to work with the FAA and welcomes opportunities “that advance our shared commitment of ensuring aviation remains the safest mode of transportation in the world.” ALPA applauded the FAA for taking action and said it was "proud to be a part of this effort." STILL GROUNDED: The FAA on Friday issued dozens of requirements SpaceX must address before its Starship Heavy rocket can fly again, following an April 20 mishap when the craft exploded mid-flight. The FAA stressed that although its inquiry is over, it “does not signal an immediate resumption of Starship launches.” SpaceX must still apply for “and receive a license modification from the FAA that addresses all safety, environmental and other applicable regulatory requirements prior to the next Starship launch,” the agency said. ELIMINATING FOREVER FOAM: California Rep. Salud Carbajal last week announced two bipartisan bills pegged to aid airports in areas like California’s Central Coast as state lawmakers try to address PFAS problems, POLITICO’S E.A. Crunden and Ellie Borst report. One bill specifically targets eliminating PFAS, which is known as a “forever chemical” largely used in firefighting foam (that seeps into groundwater supply) in favor of a hazard-free solution. It would establish a new fund within DOT for airports to seek grants for the alternative solution; the other bill would require the FAA to issue regular, periodic updates on its work transitioning airports away from PFAS-laden foams.
| | | | A message from Freight Rail Works:   | | | | | MT EXCLUSIVE: More than 1,500 local government leaders signed on to a letter, being released today, opposing congressional proposals to increase truck length or weight. (The letter is one page, with 49 pages of signatures.) The Coalition Against Bigger Trucks organized the letter, which maintains that longer or heavier trucks could damage local infrastructure and cost local governments billions of dollars. It also said that local and rural roads aren’t built to the same standards as interstates, meaning bigger trucks could increase costs and make it harder to keep up with maintenance schedules. Context: Federal law controls vehicle weights and axle loads on the interstate, and increasing federal truck size and limits has been pushed by shippers, carriers and major trucking companies for years, with the argument that it would improve safety and shipping costs.
| | THE FIGHT OVER FORD’S CHINA BATTERY DEAL: Ford’s battery technology licensing deal with a Chinese company is becoming ground zero for the tensions over the electric vehicle tax credit’s upcoming ban on Chinese inputs, James Bikales reports. Ford plans to build the batteries in Michigan, but it’s unclear how the Treasury Department will view Ford’s deal with the Chinese-owned Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. or others like it — an issue Treasury will have to settle before the Inflation Reduction Act’s exclusion from the tax credit of vehicles and materials from “foreign entities of concern” takes effect at the beginning of 2024. Pros and cons: “Ford has pledged that no taxpayer dollars will flow back to Beijing under the licensing deal, and that the agreement will allow it to be the first automaker to manufacture next-gen lithium, iron and phosphate batteries in the United States, rather than buying them from China,” James writes. But China Select Chair Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) worries that the deal will just allow “ the partial onshoring” of Chinese technology rather than facilitate the development of a domestic industry, as the law was intended. The stakes: “The pressure over the provision comes at a perilous political moment for President Joe Biden and Democrats as they strive to look tough on China while also making an aggressive climate push ahead of the 2024 elections,” James writes.
| | | Mike Cory, a veteran railroad executive with more than 40 years of operations experience, has been named CSX’s new executive vice president and chief operating officer, a title he previously held at Canadian National Railway.
| | — “Maui calls back visitors as tourist economy teeters after fires.” The Associated Press. — "Metro will run more train service than ever before, starting Monday." The Washington Post. — “Extremists keep trying to trigger mass blackouts — and that's not even the scariest part.” POLITICO. — "US automobile industry faces high sourcing risk, Fed study finds." Bloomberg. — “Honda joins Ford, GM in adopting Tesla’s EV charging system.” The Associated Press. — "Drug smoke wafts through transit but not at toxic levels, UW study says." The Seattle Times. — "Stop comparing Ramaswamy to Buttigieg. The more apt comparison is to a different Harvard alum." POLITICO. — "A passenger forced a United Airlines flight to return to the gate after trying to enter the cockpit and open the exit doors before takeoff." Insider. — "Capital One opens lounge at Washington's Dulles airport in major expansion push." Bloomberg. — “Treasury lays out next phase of clean energy tax credit implementation.” POLITICO. — "For $4,850, you can now bypass TSA lines at Atlanta’s airport." Bloomberg. — "Jet service JSX lands at center of pilot fight." The Wall Street Journal.
| | | | A message from Freight Rail Works: America’s freight railroads have always gone above and beyond federal safety requirements. We’re constantly innovating safety technology and providing our 135,000 employees with the tools and training they need to protect our communities and the economy.
Our dedication to safety means we’re pursuing proactive measures with policymakers and the communities we serve. This includes installing additional hot bearing detectors, providing even better training and support for first responders, and improving collaboration across rail companies so we can make informed decisions based on shared data. These broad industry-wide steps are a few of the many we’re taking together to make the rail network even safer. Read on to see how we’re getting safer every day. | | | | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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