ATSSA Board Chair Greg Driskell, pictured in center, Past Chair Juan Arvizu, left, and Government Relations Vice President Nathan Smith were in Las Vegas on Sunday, Feb. 16  for the “Moving America Forward” presidential candidate forum aimed at raising the profile of the nation’s infrastructure needs. United for Infrastructure organized the program with groups that build, maintain, operate, and administer America’s infrastructure systems hosting it.

Three members of the House of Representatives introduced a resolution this week recognizing the 50^th anniversary of the American Traffic Safety Services Association. The bi-partisan resolution was initiated by Rep. Rob Wittman, a Republican representing Virginia’s 1^st District, and Road Safety Caucus Chairs Bruce Westerman,  a Republican representing Arkansas’ 4^th District, and Chris Pappas, a Democrat representing New Hampshire’s 1^st District.

On Wednesday, House Democrats unveiled a $760 billion proposal to fund infrastructure investments over the next five years. ATSSA commends moving the process of highway bill reauthorization forward and looks forward to working with the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on crafting the details of the plan on a bi-partisan basis. The framework outlines major investments, including those in surface transportation, rail and transit systems, airports, ports and harbors, wastewater and drinking water infrastructure, brownfields, and broadband.  Additionally, this proposal is estimated to create more than 10 million jobs.

ATSSA strives to keep roadway safety on the minds of stakeholders from legislators on Capitol Hill to officials with Departments of Transportation (DOTs) across the country. Therefore, the Association advocates for funds available through the Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP), a core federal aid program created to reduce traffic fatalities and serious injuries on all public roads including non-state-owned roads and roads of tribal or Indian lands.

Earlier this month, ATSSA President & CEO Roger Wentz submitted a letter to the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, urging legislators to include infrastructure policies as they draft bills related to Connected and Automated Vehicles (CAVs).