Tomblin’s got an ‘in’ with the incoming U.S. Transportation secretary

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia could have a new “in” when it comes to badly-needed federal transportation funding.

Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin said that when his wife, Joanne, went to Syosset High School in New York one of her classmates was Elaine Chao, who President-elect Donald Trump announced Monday as his pick for U.S. Transportation secretary.

“You know I’ve known Elaine, not as long as my wife, but she and my wife were classmates, starting in grade school,” Tomblin said after a Monday afternoon grant presentation to communities using federal highways funding for infrastructure projects such as sidewalks.

“Yes, we’ve known Elaine for a long time, and she’s a very bright woman.”

Tomblin was asked for his reaction to Chao’s appointment while speaking with a huddle of reporters. He was excited enough about the small world development to call state Transportation Secretary Paul Mattox on his cell phone after Tomblin had excused himself but while Mattox was still chatting with reporters.

“I do not know Elaine. The governor just informed me that Elaine and the first lady went to school together,” Mattox said. “I do not know her, but I look forward to working with her.”

Separately, U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito put out a statement in support of Chao’s selection.

“Elaine Chao is an excellent choice for transportation secretary,” Capito stated. “She is a trail blazer with a proven record of leadership. I enjoyed hosting Elaine in West Virginia during the Bush Administration and hope she will visit again in her role as transportation secretary to see why infrastructure is a top priority for the Mountain State.”

Elaine Chao
Elaine Chao

Chao, 63, served as U.S. Labor secretary under George W. Bush. She was born in Taiwan and moved to the United States with her family when she was 8. She attended private school Tsai Hsing Elementary School in Taipei, for kindergarten and first grade before her family immigrated to New York. She is married to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Tomblin is leaving office and Governor-elect Jim Justice, who already seems able to get President-elect Donald Trump on the line, will be inaugurated in January. But every connection could count.

West Virginia already spends about $1.2 billion on transportation, and a Blue Ribbon Commission has identified an additional $750 million a year to take care of the highways system and another $380 million a year for expansion projects such as new 4-lane highways, Mattox said.

“So we essentially need to double the amount of investment we have in our transportation infrastructure,” Mattox said.

Trump has promised $1 trillion in new federal spending for infrastructure such as highways, but questions remain over where to find the money and whether it will even be enough.

“We will take it,” Mattox said. “Certainly a trillion dollars would go a long way to helping out the infrastructure of this country.”

Trump proposes spending that money over 10 years. As Stateline reported, the American Society of Civil Engineers estimates that fixing America’s infrastructure adequately — roads, bridges, public transit, railroads, energy systems, public parks, ports, airports, waste systems, levees, dams, drinking water facilities and hazardous waste installations — would cost $3.6 billion by 2020.

Trump has proposed a series of tax credits for infrastructure costs. He says the money lost to the U.S. Treasury would be made up by increased personal income taxes paid by workers on the projects and by business taxes paid by the construction companies that hire them.

“A trillion dollars doesn’t go a long way if you look at the 50 states and the territories,” Tomblin said. “Obviously we’ll take any money that the good president would bring our way. We’d welcome it and we’ll have our state match to be able to match every federal dollar available.”

At the top of the priority list for West Virginia is the widening of Interstate 64 between Nitro and St. Albans, Mattox said.

“It’s a huge congestion problem here in the Kanawha Valley,” Mattox said. “It needed to be done 10 years ago but we just did not have the funds. You have to prioritize but as you get the funding make it available.”

At Monday’s event at the Capitol, Tomblin announced grants to fund 54 community and infrastructure projects across the state adding up to more than $7 million for a variety of improvements.

“Today’s grant funding will allow us to build and repair infrastructure across the state — making our communities better places to live and work,” Tomblin stated.

 

 





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