President Obama Signs Surface Transportation Bill Into Law

President Obama was signing HR 4348, a transportation and student loans bill, into law during the ceremony. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

President Obama signed the long-awaited highway bill into law at the White House on Friday afternoon July 6th. The bill, Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century, or MAP-21, funds transportation programs through September 2014.

The bill holds transportation spending at current levels, authorizing $101.3 billion for highways and transit over the next 27 months.

“This measure includes historic reforms – cutting red tape and consolidating or eliminating nearly 70 federal programs,” said Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John Mica, R-Fla., in a statement.

“This bill will provide a major boost to our economy by putting Americans back to work building our nation’s bridges and highways,” he said.

Landline Magazine reported, “Truckers should know that the law does contain a provision to require electronic on-board recorders within a couple of years on heavy trucks engaged in interstate commerce. But the fight over an EOBR mandate is far from over. The House recently passed a separate bill that would, if it passes the Senate later this year, prohibit the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration from spending money to implement a mandate for EOBRs.”

Get more reactions from lawmakers and details about how they hope it will stimulate the economy at Trucking Info.