Source: United States Senator for Oklahoma James Inhofe
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) has worked tirelessly throughout his career in the Senate to better the infrastructure of the United States and Oklahoma, and has fought to maintain and improve upon America’s infrastructure so that it lasts for generations. One of Inhofe’s most memorable quotes is, “There are two things we should be doing in Congress: defending our military and rebuilding our infrastructure.”
As the past Chairman of the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, Inhofe championed highway reauthorization bills and water resources infrastructure legislation providing historic investments to build a 21st century transportation network to support our 21st century economy. These laws effectively used the nation’s resources in a fiscally responsible manner and eliminated federal red tape to allow for more state and local control and for new construction and modernization of the nation’s crumbling bridges, roads and other infrastructure. In particular, Inhofe sought to improve structurally deficient bridges. In 2005, Oklahoma ranked 49 out of 50 for fewest structurally deficient bridges. In 2022, Oklahoma ranks 5th in the nation for fewest structurally deficient bridges.
In America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2020 – one of his most notable and recent accomplishments – Inhofe secured a number of provisions benefitting people across Oklahoma, including ensuring the Tulsa-West Tulsa Levees modernization project became a reality. Not only that, this law provides certainty in water storage pricing for Enid, prioritizes investment in the McClellan–Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System and ensures Oklahoma will not have to wait almost a year after a future disastrous flood for waterborne commerce to recover.
Additionally, as an active aviator for over forty years, Inhofe has seen firsthand how important our aviation infrastructure is for continued economic growth in Oklahoma. He has been committed to helping the general and commercial aviation industries in Oklahoma and has worked to make sure that airports get the resources they need to fulfill increased security requirements.
Pre-Senate
1982 – Construction of the Zink Dam: The Zink Dam was a low water dam project that was constructed in 1982. Sen. Inhofe (Mayor of Tulsa at the time), helped secure land and $8 million to fully fund the building of dam.
Timeline of Senator Inhofe’s Accomplishments for Infrastructure
During his tenure in the Senate, Inhofe secured many achievements for infrastructure. His key accomplishments include:
1995
Cosponsored S.440 – National Highway System Designation Act of 1995: It became Public Law on November 28, 1995.
Cosponsored S.Amdt.2343 to H.R.2002: Senate Amendment 2343 was enacted to eliminate certain highway advisory committees. This amendment, co-sponsored by Sen. Inhofe, was included in H.R.2002, the Department of Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriations Act 1996, and became Public Law on November 11, 1995.
Sponsored S.Amdt.1432 to S.440 – National Highway System Designation Act of 1995: To promote engineering and design quality, ensure maximum competition by professional companies which provided engineering and design quality and ensure maximum competition by professional companies which provided engineering and design services. The amendment was agreed to in the Senate by voice vote and was added to the National Highway System Designation Act of 1995, which became law on November 28, 1995.
1996
Sponsored S.1843: To provide for the allocation of funds from the Mass Transit Account of the Highway Trust Fund, and for other purposes. Requires the Secretary of Transportation to ensure that, in each fiscal year, each state’s percentage of the total apportionments to all states from the Mass Transit Account of the Highway Trust Fund is not less than 80% of the state’s estimated tax payment attributable to highway users in the state paid into that Account in the most recent year for which data is available. Provides an exception for any state whose contribution to such Account in the applicable fiscal year is greater than or equal to $45 million.
1997
Sponsored S.556: To provide for the allocation of funds from the Mass Transit Account of the Highway Trust Fund, and for other purposes. Required the Secretary of Transportation to ensure that, in each fiscal year, each state’s percentage of the total apportionments to all states from the Mass Transit Account of the Highway Trust Fund is not less than 80% of the state’s estimated tax payment attributable to highway users in the state whose contribution to such Account in the applicable fiscal year is greater than or equal to $50 million.
1998
Protected Funding for Oklahoma City’s I-40 Crosstown Bridge Project: When House-Senate conferees on the highway bill acted in 1998 to cut funding from the project, Inhofe successfully worked alongside other Oklahoma delegation members to ensure that a full $30 million was restored.
Sponsored S. Amdt.1705 to S. Amdt.1676 – Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1997: To improve the provisions relating to contraction for engineering and design services in the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1997. This amendment was agreed to in the Senate on March 3, 1998.
2001
Sponsored S.614: To prohibit the Secretary of Transportation and the Administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Administration from acting to finalize, implement or enforce a rule related to the hours of service drivers for motor carriers and for other purposes.
2002
Sponsored S.286 – Transportation Empowerment Act: Authorized appropriations out of the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) for the interstate maintenance program, the interstate and Indian reservation bridge program, the Federal lands highways program, public lands highways, parkways and park roads, highway safety programs, highway safety research and development and transportation research.
I-40 Bridge Funding: Inhofe applauds efforts to provide necessary funding for the repair and reconstruction of the Arkansas River bridge on Interstate 40, which is a major east-west route for personal vehicle traffic as well as commercial trucking. Inhofe worked with the Appropriations Committee on securing the emergency spending for Oklahoma to reconstruct the bridge.
Cosponsored 1646: To identify certain routes in the states of Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado and New Mexico as part of the Ports-to-Plains Corridor, a high priority corridor on the National Highway System. It became Public Law on October 29, 2002.
2003
Sponsored S.1630 – Transportation Extension Act of 2003: To extend Federal surface transportation programs for five months and authorize appropriations, through February 29, 2004. It became Public Law via H.R.3087 on September 30, 2003.
2004
Sponsored S.1072 – Safe, Accountable, Flexible, and Efficient Transportation Equity Act of 2004: Reauthorizes the Federal-aid surface transportation program through FY 2009 and gives directives to the Secretary of Transportation.
Cosponsored S.1134 – Economic Development Administration Reauthorization Act of 2004: The Economic Development Administration (EDA) is a grants program to support efforts to attract new industry, encourage business expansion, diversify local economies and generate or retain higher-skill, higher-wage jobs and investments by revitalizing, expanding and upgrading physical infrastructure. This is important for small, rural communities of Oklahoma that do not have the resources to maintain the professional and technical capacity needed to develop and implement comprehensive economic development strategies. It became Public Law on October 27, 2004.
2005
Cosponsored S.169 – To amend the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991. This bill identifies a route from the states of Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Kansas as a high priority on the National Highway System. This legislation became Public Law on January 26, 2005.
Sponsored S.732 – Safe, Accountable, Flexible, and Efficient Transportation Equity Act of 2005: This bill reauthorizes the Federal-aid surface transportation program through FY 2009. This legislation became Public Law on April 6, 2005.
2006
Sponsored S.1869 – Coastal Barrier Resources Reauthorization Act of 2005: To direct the Secretary of Interior to report on the digital maps from the John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System units to Congress. This legislation became Public Law on May 25, 2006.
Cosponsored S.728 – Water Resources Development Act of 2005: This reauthorization of WRDA went far in helping Oklahoma and all other states as they worked toward meeting their critical water needs. The bill aids in providing needed funding for water resources development and protection nationwide, including Oklahoma’s Port of Catoosa. This legislation became Public Law on July 19, 2006.
Cosponsored S.1496 – Electronic Duck Stamp Act of 2005: To conduct a three-year pilot program that is under 15 states to issue electronic migratory bird hunting and conservation stamps. It became Public Law on August 3, 2006.
Sponsored S.260 – Partners for Fish and Wildlife Act: This bill requires the Secretary of the Interior to accomplish the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program to aid private landowners and other public and private entities. This legislation became Public Law on October 3, 2006.
2007
Cosponsored S.638 – Collegiate Housing and Infrastructure Act of 2007: This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code which will allow tax-exempt charitable or educational organizations to make collegiate housing and infrastructure grants. This legislation became Public Law on February 15, 2007.
Cosponsored S.992 – Public Buildings Cost Reduction Act of 2007: This bill establishes a program to increase the use of more cost-effective technologies and practices at General Services Administration (GSA) facilities. This legislation became Public Law on May 3, 2007.
Sponsored S.1637: To establish a geothermal heat pump technology acceleration program in relation to the General Services Administration facilities. This legislation became Public Law on June 15, 2007.
2008
Sponsored S. 175: To provide a study of alternatives to increase the water supplies of the Central Oklahoma Master Conservancy District and cities. This legislation became Public Law on June 11, 2008.
Cosponsored S.2146: To authorize the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to accept diesel emission reduction Supplemental Environmental Projects. This legislation became Public Law on June 30, 2008.
Saved the Highway Trust Fund: When gas prices jumped to record-highs, forcing drivers to reduce consumption, receipts for highway construction dropped to emergency lows. Through his leadership position on the Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, Sen. Inhofe successfully worked with his Senate colleagues to ensure passage of a short-term fix – H.R. 6532, which became Public Law on September 15, 2008. Sen. Inhofe took the lead in reinstating $8 billion dollars to the Highway Trust Fund to protect its solvency and ensure that road projects were fully funded and able to continue.
2010
Sponsored S.3573 – Lake Thunderbird Efficient Use Act of 2010: To allow the Bureau of Reclamation to change its management of the water levels in Lake Thunderbird to store additional water supplies in order to meet the water needs of communities served by the Central Oklahoma Master Conservancy District. This legislation became Public Law on January 10, 2013.
The Federal Highway Program: Sen. Inhofe worked successfully with his colleagues on both sides of the aisle to pass an 18-month extension of the Federal Highway Program. This legislation became Public Law on March 2, 2010.
2011
Cosponsored S.939 – Sustainable Water Infrastructure Investment Act of 2011: A bipartisan bill to help small water systems comply with federal drinking water standards.
Reauthorization of the National Highway Program: Inhofe successfully led the effort to reauthorize the national highway program with the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) Act. Inhofe secured many provisions benefiting Oklahoma, including once again ensuring that Oklahoma is no longer a donor state. Inhofe’s guiding principle behind MAP-21 was to provide states with more flexibility. This was accomplished by eliminating or consolidating programs that were duplicative or do not serve a national transportation goal. In total, Inhofe reduced the number of programs by two-thirds. This legislation became Public Law on July 6, 2012.
Sponsored S.999 – Small System Safe Drinking Water Act: Sen. Inhofe introduced this legislation with five other senators to provide special help for small water systems in rural communities.
2013
Sponsored S.Amdt.895 to S.601 – Water Resources Development Act of 2013: To allow entities such as the Cherokee Nation to construct, operate and market a hydroelectric generating facility on the W.D. Mayo Lock and Dam on the Arkansas River. Sen. Inhofe also introduced S.513 to authorize this construction as well.
2015
Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act: This bipartisan legislation reauthorized surface transportation programs for five years through FY 2020. This legislation accelerated construction of infrastructure across the nation and made the largest single infrastructure investment in Oklahoma history.
2016
Sponsored S.2684 – UAVs for Energy Infrastructure Act: To ensure operators responsible for maintaining vast networks of critical infrastructure can use unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) to comply with existing federal regulations and to respond to natural disasters.
Cosponsored S.2579 – Drinking Water Safety and Infrastructure Act: To adopt a fiscally responsible approach to provide federally backed loans to states so that they can quickly address infrastructure that is contributing to a public health crisis.
2017
Cosponsored S.692 – Water Infrastructure Flexibility Act: To provide local communities with increased flexibility when complying with Clean Water Act requirements for updates to water infrastructure projects. It would also give communities more autonomy as they prioritize and plan for wastewater and storm water investments.
Cosponsored S.1756 – Rebuild America Now Act: To provide a sound and detailed blueprint for fixing America’s broken public-works and environmental review and permitting processes. This bill aims to expedite the completion of infrastructure projects, with a focus on streamlining the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
2018
$45 Million DOT Grant for ODOT: Sen. Inhofe announced in June that the Oklahoma Department of Transportation was awarded a $45 million grant to replace bridges on I-44 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Inhofe said that “investments in infrastructure benefit all Oklahomans.”
TIGER Grants: As Chairman of the EPW Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Sen. Inhofe announced that Oklahoma was awarded a U.S. Department of Transportation TIGER grant of $9.9 million dollars to make needed improvements to the regional freight network.
Cosponsored S.2364 – Securing Required Funding for Water Infrastructure Now (SRF WIN) Act: To combine the best aspect of state revolving funds (SRFs) with the leveraging power of the Water Infrastructure and Innovation Act (WIFIA) to make the process easier and more affordable for states to meet their underserved or unmet water infrastructure needs.
2019
Cosponsored S.1087 – Water Quality Certification Improvement Act of 2019: To ensure the federal permitting process for energy infrastructure projects is not weaponized by coastal states opposed to fossil fuel energy production.
2020
Cosponsored America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2020: Inhofe, upon inclusion in the year-end appropriations bill, announced key provisions in the legislation to benefit Oklahoma for years to come. Inhofe’s provisions focused on the future of Oklahoma, including ensuring the Tulsa-West Tulsa Levees project becomes a reality.
Tulsa Port of Catoosa Grant: In March 2020, Inhofe worked with the Tulsa Port of Catoosa to receive a $1.1 million grant to improve critical freight rail infrastructure.
2021
Cosponsored S.914 – Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Act of 2021: Secured two Oklahoma water research priorities, which both passed the Senate. The first was to reauthorize the Water Resources Research Act, which provides vital water research funding to water research institutions like Oklahoma Water Resources Center at OSU. The second was to authorize Enhanced Aquifer Recharge (EAR) research in Ada, Okla., which benefits both the City of Ada and the EPA’s Kerr Research Center.
2022
Water Resources Development Act of 2022: Sen. Inhofe supported Senate passage of H.R.7776, as amended, the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2022 and the provisions in the legislation that would bring benefits to Oklahomans far into the future. This legislation passed the Senate by a vote of 93-1.
Cosponsored S.400 – William T. Coleman, Jr. and Norman Y. Mineta Department of Transportation Headquarters Act: To designate the Department of Transportation headquarters building as the William T. Coleman, Jr. and Norman Y. Mineta Federal Building. This legislation became Public Law on May 6, 2022.
Muskogee City-County Port Authority Grant: Sen. Inhofe secured $23.9 million for the reconstruction of the main dock, the construction of a heavy-lift dock, reconstruction of an on-dock rail and the construction of a new warehouse at the Muskogee City-County Port.