{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/blog?ContentRecord_id=7fa3e54b-72f7-4348-ad6b-ca6ceeecff23", "The Transportation Empowerment Act", "2013-11-14", "2013", "2013-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "The Transportation Empowerment Act\r\nThe \u201cTransportation Empowerment Act\u201d opens up America\u2019s transportation system to greater local control, better targeted projects, and a more efficient way to maintain and improve the nation\u2019s infrastructure.\u00a0 The law allows states to respond to the needs of their communities and develop systems that result in less traffic, shorter commutes, more affordable homes, and help families better manage the work-life balance.\r\n\u00a0\r\nHow it Works\r\n \r\nTransfers almost all authority over federal highway and transit programs to the states over a five-year period\r\nLowers the federal gas tax to 3.7 cents from 18.4 cents over the same time period\r\nDuring the five-year phase out, states will receive block grants that come with vastly fewer federal strings attached\r\n \r\nWhat It Does\r\n \r\nImmediately lessens the bureaucratic burden on states to construct critical transportation projects\r\nResults in a faster administrative response to the transportation problems Americans face, such as traffic, commuting, and access\r\nGives states greater flexibility in their tax structure\r\nConnects where people want to work with where they want to live\r\nOpens opportunities to develop new mass-transit solutions, innovate environmental protections, and improve the financing of projects\r\nCreates jobs and grows the economy", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/blog?ContentRecord_id=7fa3e54b-72f7-4348-ad6b-ca6ceeecff23"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.0028150863945484, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}