We're so much better off when gov't is responsible for our safety & infrastructure..

P. Lotor · Dec 17, 2011

Yes, the street poll falling on this man's car was not the fault of the city that forcibly took its residents' money to build that street poll. the street poll falling was an "act of God." The city refuses to pay for the damages it's faulty maintenance of road infrastructure caused. This is exactly why we need government to do more things for us, and to be responsible for our safety in all areas of life: they know what they are doing, they are good at it, and they always take responsibility when they fail. and they're just doing what they do to protect us, taxpayers..

We need to follow state law, Lamers said. State law basically lays out the liability for cities like this, and that law is in place to protect tax payers.
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http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2011/12/16/fort-worth-facing-an-act-of-god-over-street-light/

waltky · Jan 29, 2013

Granny wants a scooter lane fer her motor scooter fer her safety onna road...

Senior citizens drive infrastructure spending
1/28/13 - Mobility plays an underappreciated role in health and well-being

Its no secret that Americas population is getting old. And aside from figuring out the future of Medicare and Social Security, policymakers have another big challenge: helping older people get out and about. That mobility actually plays an underappreciated role in health and well-being and mayors and state officials are beginning to make it part of how they think about infrastructure spending. They are making the case that planning and building ahead for the rapidly aging population should be a big consideration as they divvy up their state budgets.

It was one of the themes raised at the U.S. Conference of Mayors winter meeting this month in Washington. And some mayors are thinking about ways of encouraging seniors to move from the suburbs back to the city. That way, they can take advantage of the infrastructure in place and build from that. The more we can do to attract baby boomers to the heart of the city, the better off our city will be, Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton said at the conference, which included a panel on this topic. By 2050, Americas population of people older than 65 will exceed 88 million more than double that population in 2010, according to the Administration on Aging.

Policies that help older people age in place without relocating or moving into facilities like nursing homes are key to keeping an aging population connected even after they give up their car keys health advocates say. But they need to be mobile. An 85-year-old who cant get transportation to the doctor to control her five chronic diseases, for instance, is at risk of ending up in an ambulance instead.

And there are social and emotional consequences, as well which in turn affect health. The whole deal with healthy aging is to stay connected and stay involved, and the enemy of healthy aging is social isolation, Ruth Finkelstein, senior vice president for policy and planning at The New York Academy of Medicine, told the panel. Research suggests that the single most important predictor of life expectancy in the U.S. is a rich social network and social engagement, Finkelstein told POLITICO.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/...rastructure-spending-86780.html#ixzz2JL1dp13M
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waltky · Feb 20, 2013

Congress eyeing new fees or tax hikes for road and bridge repair...

Congress looks for road repair funds
2/20/13: Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are looking at new fees or tax hikes to generate money to patch up the nations highways and bridges in an attempt to avoid another session of kicking the can down the proverbial crumbling road.

The poor state of the nations outdated infrastructure has become a familiar story with the public, but few believe Washington is serious about addressing it. Just 30 percent of those surveyed in a recent Gallup Poll said the president and Congress will make fixing roads a priority. The only policy area believed to be less of a priority was global warming. That skepticism comes from the belief that Washington wont be able take on transit and highway repairs without addressing the vexing revenue question. And since polls show public resistance to raising the two-decade-old 18.4-cents-per-gallon federal gas tax rate, politicians are afraid to touch it.

But that fee, which is expected to yield $44 billion this year, doesnt pay for what Congress spends on transport infrastructure. So in order to avoid dipping into the general fund, politicians will have to get creative. They also need to act fast: The Congressional Budget Office estimates an addtional $21 billion in revenue will be needed just to keep spending levels flat for two years after the transportation law expires in 2014. Even the respected bipartisan duo of Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson, who recommended in 2010 that the government crank up the gas tax by a penny a month for two years, got no traction. After three years of being ignored by President Barack Obama and Hill leaders, Tuesdays new Simpson-Bowles 2.0 plan only suggested that lawmakers bring spending and revenue in line no specifics.

Political momentum is building behind a distance-based fee for drivers, but privacy issues and technology concerns mean any per-mile charge is probably too far down the road, so Oregon Rep. Peter DeFazio, the top Democrat on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committees Highways and Transit panel, has been crunching numbers on more viable options with full committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.). DeFazio favors a slow and steady increase in the gas tax which can be leveraged through a 20-year bond issue to cover near-term spending needs. Rather than only gradually increasing federal transportation spending by a few percentage points annually, he hopes a bond on future proceeds would deliver more than $100 billion upfront, an idea that could win public support by putting thousands of people to work, easing the sting from a 1-cent to 2-cents-per-gallon increase per year.

That would have a minuscule impact on people, DeFazio said. I drive to a gas station on the way to work, and theyre jacking up the price by 10 cents a gallon. According to DeFazios office, tying the gas tax to the consumer price index would bring $50 billion over 10 years, while pegging it to the Department of Transportations National Highway Cost Construction Index would yield $150 billion over the same period. There would be acceptance of something as modest as that if [people] also knew what the benefits were going to be. Thats why I wouldnt just propose increasing it, and then letting it creep up. My proposal goes further, DeFazio explained. That could be $120 [billion], $140 billion upfront into the [Highway] Trust Fund right now to begin to deal with the backlog of projects. And people would see construction activity everywhere in America.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/...dy-gas-tax-increases-87822.html#ixzz2LUSu2XjG
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waltky · Dec 9, 2016

Granny says, "Dat's right - Make America Great Again...

Trump wants buy American provision in infrastructure bill
Saturday 10th December, 2016 - Donald Trump has made clear he wants buy-American rules in the massive infrastructure program hes planning, launching an ardent defence of domestic-purchase requirements that can cause tensions with other countries.

Critics of such buy-American provisions say it not only freezes out foreign competition, but hurts Americans too, by driving up the cost of construction, which means taxpayers get fewer roads and bridges for their buck and fewer construction jobs in the long run. But the measures have considerable political support and the president-elect strongly suggested, in a speech Thursday night, that he sees them as part of a historic, $1 trillion infrastructure bill hes urging lawmakers to pass. My administration will follow two simple rules buy American and hire American, Trump told a cheering crowd in Iowa, at his latest post-election, campaign-style rally.

On infrastructure, I am going to ask Congress to pass legislation that produces $1 trillion of new investment in Americas crumbling infrastructure and it is indeed crumbling. That includes major new projects for both our rural communities and our inner cities, which have also been forgotten. And we will put our people not people from other lands our people back to work in the process. It is time to help Americans get off the welfare and get back into the labour market and theyre going to want to do it. ... Rebuilding this country with American hands, by American workers. Were going to do it.

His words echo those of some lawmakers from both parties, which suggests the issue could surface in the new year when Congress turns its attention to Trumps legislative agenda. It would repeat an old story. In the midst of the 2009 recession, Congress included buy-American rules in a stimulus bill signed by President Barack Obama which caused early tension with the Canadian government, as the latter argued the rules made little sense in an integrated continental economy where companies operate on both sides of the border. After much lobbying, the Canadian government got a special carve-out for Canada but it didnt apply to every infrastructure program, didnt apply in every state, was only temporary and has now expired.

Some U.S. trade veterans have been expecting this issue to resurface. My best guess would be that if there is a stimulus bill, there would be a buy-American provision, said Jean Heilman Grier, who used to work for the U.S. government as the senior procurement negotiator for trade deals. She said she hopes the bill at least will include a stipulation that existing trade agreements be respected a clarification senators added to the 2009 stimulus bill. She said Canada might also try including procurement in the upcoming discussion about NAFTA, which Trump says he wants to renegotiate. Canadas new deal with the European Union includes liberalized infrastructure procurement.

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Balto · Dec 9, 2016

The only comment I have on this is this. The EPA exposed to failing infrastructure in Michigan leaking lead into thousands of residents homes, and poisoning hundreds.

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We're so much better off when gov't is responsible for our safety & infrastructure..

P. Lotor Banned Past Donor

waltky Well-Known Member

waltky Well-Known Member

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Balto Well-Known Member

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We're so much better off when gov't is responsible for our safety & infrastructure..

P. Lotor Banned Past Donor

waltky Well-Known Member

waltky Well-Known Member

waltky Well-Known Member

Balto Well-Known Member

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