Hungry Horse News

Montana Sen. Max Baucus is going to bat for Going-to-the-Sun Road reconstruction funding as well as other Montana projects.

Sun Highway funding is a "top priority for Max," said spokesman Barrett Kaiser.

The road, which is the lifeblood of the summer tourist season needs between $100 and $140 million in repairs.

Baucus and Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, have amended the new six-year transportation bill that would provide $11 billion more than a bill recently passed by the U.S. House of Representatives.

The Senate bill sets aside $2.1 billion more for Montana over the six-year period, while the house version sets aside $1.9 billion. The additional $200 million is critical, Baucus claims.

The bill also makes overall increases for roads in National Parks, Kaiser said.

The bill passed the Senate on Tuesday.

It will then go to a joint coinference committee, where members of the House and Senate will hash out a final deal. Baucus will sit on that committee, Kaiser said.

"Max will fight for every last penny for federal highway funds for Montana," Kaiser said.

Kaiser also noted that he didn't think President Bush would veto the bill. For one, it's a jobs bill and secondly, Bush has yet to veto a bill brought before him.

A House version of the six-year highway bill didn't earmark funding for the Going-to-the-Sun Road, although it was lauded by Montana Congressman Denny Rehberg for providing funds for $4 million parking garage in Bozeman and for $12 million toward completion of highway 323, from Ekalaka to Alzada.

Rehberg is a member of the House Appropriations Committee. He recently admonished the Senate for holding up the highway bill. Rehberg spokesman Brad Keena said the reason for that was last year, the Senate tinkered with the bill and it never passed. He said Rehberg wanted to get something passed before the construction season.

But having said that, Keena said it the Senate can get funding for the Sun Highway, then all the better.

Kaiser noted that the increase in funding in the Senate version of the bill does not increase the federal budget deficit, because the highway bill is funded by gas taxes.

The amended version of the bill also provides funding for the Kalispell U.S. 93 bypass project, Claggett Hill Road, U.S. Highway 2 improvements and others.