To ordinary taxpayers, the funding guarantee means the federal government is going to spend your highway taxes as it promised when the taxes were imposed. We applaud the Congress for writing this basic principle of taxpayer fairness into law. We look forward to working with members of this committee to protect the firewall provisions against encroachment by those who prefer the old scheme of borrowing highway taxes to finance other elements of the federal budget. Since the TEA21 funding guarantee may become an issue at some point in this year's appropriations cycle, let me make two additional points about it. First, the money is needed.
Every state has a long backlog of unmet road and bridge improvements.
That's why the nation's governors last year gave such strong support to the highway funding guarantees being developed in TEA21. It's also why governors attending the National Governors' Association winter meeting two months ago held a press conference urging Congress to fulfill the funding commitments made in TEA21. Second, motorists are still paying more taxes than they're getting back in highway funds. We urge the subcommittee to defend its handiwork and protect the funding guarantee against encroachment by other committees or the White House. When the Vice President announced this initiative on January 11, it was widely praised on Capitol Hill and in the media.