Washington, DC- Rep. Tom Rice (SC-07), was appointed by Transportation & Infrastructure Chairman Bill Shuster (PA-09) today to the following Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittees: Subcommittee on Highways and Transit; Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment; and the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation. The Transportation & Infrastructure Committee will meet later today to formally approve Rep. Rice’s subcommittee assignments.
“I am pleased that Chairman Shuster appointed me to subcommittees that will have a direct impact on some of the most vital infrastructure issues in the Seventh Congressional District,” said Rice. “Serving on the Subcommittees on Highway and Transit, Water Resources and Environment, and Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, I will have a seat at the table to fight for the greatest infrastructure needs – I-73 and dredging of the Georgetown Port – in the 7th District.”
“I look forward to working with Congressman Rice on the Committee,” said Chairman Shuster. “I know that South Carolina’s 7th Congressional District, like the nation, depends on an effective and efficient transportation network. I know Tom will be a tireless advocate as Congress works to address our critical infrastructure needs.”
“I am eager to work with Chairman Shuster on projects that are paramount to our nation’s competitiveness and will fight to make sure the infrastructure needs for the 7th District are addressed,” concluded Rice.
Subcommittee on Highways and Transit – http://transportation.house.gov/subcommittees/highways-and-transit
The Subcommittee on Highways and Transit has responsibility for the development of national surface transportation policy, construction and improvement of highway and transit facilities, implementation of safety and research programs, and regulation of commercial motor vehicle operations. Within this scope of responsibilities, the Subcommittee has jurisdiction over many U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) programs.
The foremost legislative product of the Subcommittee is the reauthorization of the Federal surface transportation programs. The Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21)—the latest reauthorization of these programs—was enacted in the summer of 2012. MAP-21 reauthorizes Federal surface transportation programs through September 30, 2014, and builds on the foundation established by the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA), the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA 21) enacted in 1998, and the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) enacted in 2005. This legislation represents an investment in the nation’s infrastructure that translates into safer travel, more efficient commerce, faster project approval and delivery, and the creation of thousands of jobs.
Issues and agencies under the jurisdiction of the Highways and Transit Subcommittee include:
Federal-aid highway and Federal transit programs
Highway and transit project planning and development
Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)
Federal Transit Administration (FTA)
Motor carrier and highway safety regulation
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)
Highway safety research and highway safety grants to states
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
Surface transportation research, administered by FHWA, FTA, and FMCSA, and coordinated through the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA)
Security and enforcement responsibilities of the above agencies, particularly FTA and FMCSA
The Clean Air Act, certain provisions relating to air quality issues
Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment – http://transportation.house.gov/subcommittees/water-resources-and-environment
The jurisdiction of the Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment consists generally of matters relating to water resources development, conservation and management, water pollution control and water infrastructure, and hazardous waste cleanup. A number of agencies administer programs that address one or more of these issues; two agencies in particular, the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), oversee the larger programs of concern to the Subcommittee.
Through its Civil Works Program, the Corps constructs projects for the purposes of navigation, flood control, beach erosion control and shoreline protection, hydroelectric power, recreation, water supply, environmental protection, restoration and enhancement, and fish and wildlife mitigation.
EPA has the primary responsibility for carrying out the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, commonly known as the Clean Water Act. This act provides for a major federal/state program to protect, restore, and maintain the quality of the nation’s waters. Although EPA is responsible for carrying out the Act, significant parts of the program may be administered by the states if approved by EPA.
Issues and agencies under the jurisdiction of the Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee include
Water resources programs of the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps)
Clean Water Act
Superfund (Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act)
Water infrastructure and watershed protection programs
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Brownfields program
Ocean dumping
Oil pollution of navigable waters of the United States
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)
Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation
Small watershed program of the Natural Resources Conservation Service
Deepwater ports
Invasive/aquatic nuisance species
Coastal pollution and coastal zone management
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Natural resource damages provisions in Superfund and the Oil Pollution Act
Groundwater protection
Water resources policy
Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation – http://transportation.house.gov/subcommittees/coast-guard-and-maritime-transportation
The Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation has jurisdiction over the activities of the United States Coast Guard, including its duties, organization, functions, personnel, the Coast Guard Academy, and the Coast Guard Auxiliary.
The Coast Guard enforces the laws of the United States on waters under U.S. jurisdiction and on the high seas. The service’s many missions include search and rescue, illegal drug and migrant interdiction, oil spill prevention and response, maritime safety and security, maintaining aids to navigation, icebreaking, and enforcement of U.S. fisheries and marine pollution laws.
The Subcommittee also has jurisdiction over regulation of ocean shipping and the merchant marine, except as it relates to national security.
Issues and agencies under the jurisdiction of the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee include:
United States Coast Guard
Maritime transportation safety
Navigation, port and waterway safety
Maritime transportation regulatory activities, including the regulation of vessels and merchant seaman,
State boating safety programs
Marine environmental protection, generally as related to vessel operations (oil and plastics pollution, invasive/aquatic nuisance species transported by vessels, international agreements concerning transportation of oil and hazardous substances)
Port security
Federal Maritime Commission and the regulation of ocean shipping
The Jones Act (United States cabotage laws governing shipping of goods and passengers between any two points in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone)
Non-national security aspects of the merchant marine
