Congress approves two-month extension of transportation spending

Congress has approved a two-month extension of transportation funding that originally expired last September. It was the third extension of TEA 21, which lawmakers are struggling to reauthorize in the face of the competing demands of the House, Senate and White House. At stake is billions of dollars in transportation funding, a portion of which is designated for transit. The Senate has proposed the most ambitious plan, a $318 billion measure that would guarantee $56.5 billion for transit over the next six years. The House’s version is more modest, coming in at $275 million, with $51.5 billion for transit. The White House, meanwhile, has issued veto threats if the spending plan tops $256 billion. The new extension expires on June 30.