Congress set up the Highway Trust Fund in 1956 to create a sense of “trust” between America’s drivers and the federal government. Fees collected from highway users, such as fuel and truck taxes, are deposited into the fund and the federal government is supposed to use that money for projects that benefit those users paying the bill. After decades of demonstrated success, the trust fund has become under funded and insolvent. Revenues are currently insufficient to adequately address growing highway safety and mobility needs. At the same time anti-highway activists are trying to divert more and more funds to non-road purposes, reducing the trust with taxpayers. The American Highway Users Alliance champions the trust fund concept and our most important goal is to ensure that highway users get an excellent return on their investment of highway user fees. It’s critical that Congress and the Obama Administration “Put the Trust Back” into a strong and well-funded Highway Trust Fund.
