Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, ranking member of the Senate Transportation Appropriations Committee, says it's not a permanent fix, but approves that the Senate has passed a temporary extension of the Highway Trust Fund.
The extension would keep federal highway money flowing to states into mid-December, but the Senate stripped out a House funding provision that would have kept the program solvent through May — a move the House has vowed to counter.
A portion of what you pay for gas is directed to the federal Highway Trust Fund. That money helps fund highway work.
The Obama administration has said the current gas tax is not keeping up with the fund and money could run out in August.
Collins said in a statement last night after the vote that the House and Senate must agree soon on a more permanent solution soon, with 700,000 jobs relying on that money.
The bill now goes back to the House.
