Press Releases

Opening remarks, as prepared, of Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Sam Graves (R-MO) from today’s hearing, entitled “Oversight of the Department of Transportation’s Policies and Programs and Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Request”:

Thank you, Secretary Duffy, for being here today to discuss the Department of Transportation’s policies, programs, and fiscal year 2026 budget request. You have had an extremely busy first six months, and I appreciate you coming in to answer questions from Members of the Committee.

Following the tragic aviation accidents in recent months and years of underinvestment in FAA’s capital budget, this committee responded by providing the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) with a $12.5 billion down payment to modernize air traffic control (ATC) systems as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. This funding will allow the Administration to immediately get to work to replace critical telecommunications infrastructure and radar systems, invest in runway safety and airport surveillance projects, and replace antiquated air traffic control facilities.

I appreciate your work on the Administration’s “Brand New Air Traffic Control System Plan,” and I look forward to working with you and the Administration to ensure this funding supports the plan’s goals and helps deliver a state-of-the-art ATC system.

We also recently marked the one-year anniversary of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 being signed into law. This bipartisan law significantly advances the aviation industry through safety reforms, requirements for the FAA to plan for modernizing the ATC system, improvements to address workforce challenges, increased funding for airports across the country, improvements to the passenger experience, and the inclusion of the first ever general aviation title.

I look forward to working with you, Secretary Duffy, so that this law is implemented in a way that ensures America’s aviation system remains the gold standard for the world.

Additionally, the Committee is already working on the next surface transportation bill, which we plan to consider before the end of the year. The current authorization, which is set to expire next September, has plagued infrastructure planning with delays, cost increases, and administrative confusion.

This committee has a prime opportunity to refocus on core infrastructure that moves people and goods safely and efficiently, cut red tape and accelerate project delivery, ensure states have the flexibility they need to address their priorities, and shore up the bankrupt Highway Trust Fund.

We must maintain the “user pays” principle and offer solutions for putting the Highway Trust Fund on a more sustainable fiscal path. I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to address the Trust Fund’s funding challenges.

Put simply, we have to make America build again.

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