Times Free Press | Local Lock Repair Bill Proposed

Local Lock Repair Bill Proposed
By Staff Report | Times Free Press | April 1, 2012

A bipartisan bill was introduced in the U.S. House on Friday that could help revive the stalled Chickamauga lock in Chattanooga.

U.S. Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Ky., the chairman of the House Subcommittee on Energy and Power, and Rep. Jerry Costello, D-Ill., a senior member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, are proposing legislation to implement most of the barge industry recommendations to boost spending on locks and dams. The proposed Waterways Are Vital for the Economy, Energy, Efficiency, and Environment Act of 2012 (WAVE4 Act) would raise barge fuel taxes, boost taxpayer support for fixing dams and locks and reform the way the Army Corps of Engineers undertakes such projects.

“Our aging infrastructure jeopardizes efficient waterborne commerce and highlights the need for the WAVE4 Act that will implement a comprehensive plan to improve project management and put in place an objective investment strategy that will prioritize our infrastructure needs,” Whitfield said in introducing the legislation.

Costello said the act would reform the funding formula used by the Inland Waterways Trust Fund to pay for lock improvements, including construction of the $693 million new and bigger Chickamauga lock.

“Importantly, industry has committed to paying more to meet the maintenance challenges we face, and addressing how projects are prioritized should be a part of this process,” he said.

U.S. Rep. John Duncan, R-Tenn., and Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Ala., are among five other co-sponsors.

Alexander wants more nuke plants

U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., praised the decision by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Friday to authorize construction of two more reactors in South Carolina. Despite opposition from NRC Chairman Gregory Jaczko, the commission voted 4-1 to grant a license to Scana Corp. to build and operate new Westinghouse AP 1000 reactors at the Virgil C. Summer plant, about 26 miles northwest of Columbia. Alexander said he hopes the NRC approves more new reactors.

“We need to build at least 100 new nuclear reactors over the next 20 years to provide the massive amounts of low-cost, reliable, clean electricity that American businesses and homes need to thrive in the 21st century,” Alexander said in a statement.

Alabama leads in jobless drop

Alabama had the biggest drop of any state in its February jobless rate compared with a year ago.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said last week that unemployment in Alabama during February declined to 7.6 percent from 9.3 percent a year ago. Tennessee’s jobless rate in February was 8 percent, down from 9.5 percent a year ago, and Georgia’s jobless rate of 9.1 percent in February was down from 9.9 percent a year ago.

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