Inland Waterways Authorization Bill - Statement on Signing H.R. 8533 Into Law.

Today I have signed into law I-I.R. 8533, an act that authorizes the replacement of Locks and Dam 26 at Alton, Illinois, and establishes the principle of user charges on the inland waterways.

Many people in Congress worked to make this bill possible. I want to express my particular appreciation to Senators Wendell Anderson, Adlai Stevenson, Russell Long, Pete Domenici, and Jennings Randolph, and to Chairmen Bizz Johnson, Glenn Anderson, and Al Ullman, who helped to fight for Locks and Dam 26 and for an adequate user charge.

The act I have just signed takes an historic first step by providing a fuel tax on commercial operators on the waterway system. Until now, the costs of building, maintaining, and operating the navigation facilities that waterway operators use have been borne entirely by the general taxpayers, with no contribution from users. Every administration since that of Franklin D. Roosevelt has tried to change this situation. This bill makes substantial progress toward accomplishing this long sought goal.

The bill provides for a tax that will start at 4 cents per gallon in 1980, and increase to 10 cents per gallon in 1985. The proceeds from this tax will be deposited in a trust fund for use in construction of new waterway projects. While this is less than the cost recovery I had requested, it is a major step in that direction.

The act also provides for a comprehensive study to be carried out by the Secretary of Transportation for the purpose of fully assessing the impacts and effects of various types and levels of user charges. We are looking forward to carrying out this study and making recommendations based on it to a future Congress. I intend to continue to work hard for an adequate level of cost recovery on the waterway system.

The bill is also important because it authorizes a much needed new lock and dam at Alton, Illinois. Many in the Midwest have long been concerned with the condition and capacity of Locks and Dam 26. Farmers who depend on water transportation to move their grain to market, and others who rely on our waterways for supplies of chemicals, fuels, fertilizers, and other bulk commodities, know the importance of a smoothly functioning waterway system. There is no question that significant physical deterioration has occurred in the present facility at Alton and that an increase in its capacity will be needed before long. This law meets these concerns by authorizing a new, modern facility with a single 1,200-foot lock designed to meet the needs of waterborne traffic in this area for many years to come.

The prolonged and lively debate over this authorization has raised fundamental issues of national transportation policy. My decision to support the authorization for construction of a new facility at Alton was made in the context of careful consideration of all the transportation factors involved.

The careful consideration that the administration and the Congress gave to this issue illustrates the new era of budgeting restraint we are entering. In the future, we can only afford to invest in the highest priorities and the most needed projects. This applies not only for waterway and other transportation facilities but in every area of Federal spending.

The Upper Mississippi River Basin Commission is required to carry out comprehensive studies of the future transportation requirements of this region. We are very hopeful that these studies, along with the analysis of user charges, will lead to a prudent program of future waterway investment, together with a fair and just cost recovery mechanism. If we can accomplish these goals, we can continue to provide this region with the transportation system it must have.