GOP chairman calls infrastructure meeting as Trump plan remains on hold

The chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has scheduled a meeting on infrastructure as President Trump’s rebuilding plan has been put on ice.

Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) invited Republican members on the committee to an infrastructure meeting on Friday, according to a source familiar with the meeting. Lawmakers were asked to bring their ideas and priorities, which could be used to start putting together a potential rebuilding package.

The meeting, which comes the same day that the panel is supposed to unveil a water infrastructure bill, could be an effort to kick-start rebuilding efforts on Capitol Hill.

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Trump has repeatedly promised to upgrade roads, bridges and airports with a $1 trillion infrastructure bill. The White House put forth a proposal in February, but White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders recently cast doubt on the potential for a package this year.

“I don’t know that there will be one by the end of this year. Certainly, the administration, as you mentioned, secured some funding for infrastructure projects,” Sanders said last week when asked about the likelihood for an overarching piece of legislation.

“We’re going to continue to look at ways to improve the nation’s infrastructure. But in terms of a specific piece of legislation, I’m not aware that that will happen by the end of the year,” she added. 

But lawmakers on the Transportation Committee have expressed frustration that the rebuilding plan has stalled. 

Shuster, who is retiring this year, may also be eager to bolster his legacy by passing a massive infrastructure package before he leaves Congress.

Former infrastructure policy adviser DJ Gribbin left the White House in April and has not been replaced.