On Thursday, July 31, the Senate followed the lead of the House and easily approved a $7 billion short-term fix to the Federal Highway Program ensuring that it will stay solvent through at least the rest of the fiscal year, which ends on September 30, 2009. Last week's action by the House and Senate to pass a short-term fix, means that Congress will have to face the authorization question in September after returning from the summer recess.  While House leaders have been pushing a full six-year authorization measure, the Obama administration and the Senate have favored a temporary extension of current authority for 18 months. Read more at transportation.house.gov and at nationaljournal.com.

Senators Tom Coburn (R-OK) and John McCain (R-AZ) released a report called "Out of Gas" which identifies and criticizes all non-highway transportation spending. They single out bicycle and pedestrian projects as an unnecessary luxury. Read more here.

States that do not ban texting by drivers could forfeit hundreds of millions of dollars in federal highway funds under legislation introduced July 29 in the Senate. If passed, states will have two years to outlaw the sending of text and e-mail messages by drivers or lose 25 percent of their highway money each year until the money is depleted. The proposal was issued a day after the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute released a study on commercial truck drivers that found texting drivers to be 23 times more likely to crash or almost crash. Source: New York Times

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have recommended adoption of complete streets policies as a strategy to fight obesity. Six of the 24 suggestions on the list deal with the creation of complete streets. Read the Streetsblog recap here.

The Congressional District work period is set to begin in August and most of your senators and representatives will be back in their home states and districts. Many of them have already scheduled town hall meetings. This is the time to meet them to discuss the issues that are important to you and your community.  

Schedule meetings with your members in their district office and invite them to attend an event in your community. Read the League's tips on meeting with your legislators here. Visit the League's Advocacy Center to review key federal legislation.

Click here to read more on the Transportation Reauthorization bill and the Surface Transportation law, which is set to expire September 30, 2009. Also, visit fhwa.dot.gov for further info.

The New York City Council voted 46-1 on July 29 in favor of Intro 871, the Bicycle Access Bill, which aims to improve bicycle access and parking options in the five boroughs. Cyclists who do not commute by bike have long cited the lack of a secure place to lock up as the most important factor holding them back. Intro 871 will give cyclists the legal framework to petition for bicycle access at their places of work but does not guarantee access to all buildings. Read Transportation Alternatives statement on Inro 871.

The Los Alamos County Transportation Board will consider a resolution this August to prohibit the New Mexico Department of Transportation from using cost-saving techniques that render paved highway shoulders hazardous and unusable by bicyclists. A decision to proceed would follow the lead of the Santa Fe City Council, which approved a similar resolution banning partial paving earlier this year. Visit the Bicycle Coalition of New Mexico for more info, including photographs of incomplete pavement overlays, the City of Santa Fe resolution prohibiting the practice, and a copy of BCNM's letter to Governor Richardson. Click here for further details.

The August 14 Miami Valley Cycling Summit, the first-ever and part of the Drive Less Live More campaign, is a call for action for those who are interested in transforming the Dayton, Ohio region to a healthier, more vibrant community. Details, registration and a full schedule of events for the Miami Valley Cycling Summit can be found at www.metroparks.org/CyclingSummit.

Planet Bike has just announced it is providing up to $25,000 in scholarships and travel stipends for grassroots advocacy leaders to attend Alliance for Biking & Walking trainings this year. Find out more.

The City of Omaha, Nebraska is seeking applicants for a  position in the City of Omaha Planning Department, with coordination responsibilities with other city departments, elected and administrative officials and community partners such as Metropolitan Area Planning Agency (MAPA) and Metro Area Transit (MAT). Further information can be found at:      http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us.