Dear Fellow Hoosiers,

Thank you for the opportunity to update you on the work of the 114th Congress.  I trust this finds you and your family well, as we work together to bring Hoosier common sense to Washington.

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In this week's Rokita Report

• Infrastructure Proposal Raids Next Generation Trust Fund
• Protecting Pilots from FAA Overregulation
• Restoring Constitutional Checks and Balances

Infrastructure Proposal Raids Next Generation Trust Fund

On Wednesday, Indiana gubernatorial candidate John Gregg released his infrastructure plan for Indiana, proposing a raid on the Next Generation Trust Fund to fund new projects.

We all agree on the need to modernize our infrastructure to keep our economy competitive.  As the only Hoosier majority Member on the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, I helped write into law the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act.  Signed into law in December, the FAST Act is the first multi-year highway bill in over a decade, bringing over $5 billion in new highway funding to Indiana.  The new law does this in a responsible way that does not raise taxes on Hoosiers and does not harm future generations.  Indiana Democrats talk about these things, but have no action to back up their rhetoric.

John Gregg and the Indiana Democrats’ proposal would gut our state’s reserves.  Indiana leaders need to use the reforms and funding in the FAST Act to maintain and improve the "Crossroads of America."  The Gregg proposal diminishes Indiana’s advantages under our recently-passed law, taking money away from dedicated highway projects in order to fund new government bureaucracy.

John Gregg’s proposal would raid the Next Generation Trust Fund of $300 million to pay for new state and local projects, instead of letting those dollars continue to accumulate interest and grow over time. Gregg’s plan would also transfer the remaining $200 million in the fund to create a Hoosier State Infrastructure Bank.  State infrastructure banks have frequently been criticized as doing little more than funding duplicative projects, using the taxes of tomorrow to fund projects today.  Hoosiers deserve better.

Protecting Pilots from FAA Overregulation

This week, the House passed legislation to keep the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) operating through September 2017 with some important changes for aviators.

This FAA extension includes a big win for general aviation.  As a commercially-rated pilot myself, this issue is very important to me.  The bill includes provisions on Third Class Medical reform.  Third Class Medicals are an onerous certificate that requires pilots to undergo an annual checkup at FAA-approved doctors.  In addition, the bill includes tower marking requirements that improve safety for aviators, and policies that address critical staffing shortages of air traffic controllers.  We can begin to provide solutions to some of our aviation industry’s most pressing challenges.  While these are strong victories, we must continue pushing forward with long-term reform that addresses unresolved issues not included in this extension – such as the bipartisan reforms to the agency’s certification process.

Representative Rokita with Speaker Ryan at the Speaker's
Signing Ceremony for the FAA Reauthorization Bill

I want to thank Chairman Shuster of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for his continued leadership in seeking solutions to these problems and for his support of these important provisions. I look forward to working with him as the Committee develops a long-term bill that benefits all users of our aviation system.

Restoring Constitutional Checks and Balances

On Tuesday, the House took a strong stand on taking powers back from federal regulatory agencies by passing important legislation that I cosponsored, the Separation of Powers Restoration Act.

In 1984, the Supreme Court ruled that courts should defer to federal administrative agencies’ interpretations of ambiguous statutes. This became known as Chevron Deference.  Under Chevron Deference, federal agencies have morphed into a tyrannical fourth branch of government that is able to legislate, interpret, and execute powers without checks and balances.

As your voice in Washington, I understand the importance of restoring accountability to our runaway bureaucracy.  This bill begins the re-calibration of checks and balances by directing the courts to conduct a de novo, or from scratch, review of all relevant questions of law, including the interpretation of constitutional and statutory provisions.  Passing this bill, I was reminded of a time when I met with the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, and he made it clear that Congress has a responsibility to provide clarity in the laws we write.  This bill provides clear intent that the unelected bureaucrats must abide by.  They will not be able to use their own interpretations driven by their ideology and this bill is a tool to require them to do so.

I know that this can be done successfully because as Indiana’s Secretary of State, I oversaw agencies that did not have rule making authority. If we wanted to make a change in the Indiana Administrative Code, I had to get that passed through the state legislature. This common sense model should be an example for Washington and enacting it has been and will remain a legislate priority of mine to take on Washington's regulatory overreach.

Thank you for your continued interest in Congress and for supporting my efforts to bring Hoosier common sense to Washington. Take care.  

Sincerely,
 
Todd Rokita