The Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) is a partnership of 28 national associations and construction unions representing hundreds of thousands of individuals with a direct market interest in federal transportation programs. The TCC was initiated in July 1996 to focus on the federal budget and surface transportation program reauthorization debates. TCC activists can be found in virtually every congressional district and provide a vital service to their communities by helping to improve the efficiency and safety of our nation's highway infrastructure.

The unique membership of the TCC enables the coalition to articulate the impact of federal policies and investment levels on all aspects of the transportation construction industry. TCC member organizations represent contractors, the planning and design community, materials and manufacturing industries and their employees. In addition to being able to speak with one voice for our industry, the TCC's wide-ranging expertise and shared resources allow the coalition to be involved in a variety of issues of importance to our members.

Over the past decade, the TCC and its member organizations have conducted a multi-faceted advocacy campaign aimed at achieving our primary goal: ensuring all highway user fees are invested to maintain and improve our nation's transportation infrastructure. Our campaign included direct lobbying, grassroots activism, empirical research, public education, advertising and media relations. These efforts were rewarded with the enactment of the historic Transportation Equity Act for the 21 st Century, or TEA-21 in 1998. In the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users, or SAFETEA-LU, enacted in 2005, TCC was successful in having these principles carried forward. The TCC used a similar campaign to help build support for enactment of the Aviation Reform and Investment Act for the 21 st Century, or AIR-21, in 2000 and will do the same in the current aviation reauthorization debate.

If you have any questions or would like additional information regarding the issues described in this packet please feel free to contact ARTBA's David Bauer at 202-289-4434 or AGC's Brian Deery at 703-837-5319. We look forward to working with you to enact a multi-year reauthorization of the federal surface transportation program in 2009 that truly addresses the needs of our nation's transportation infrastructure.