Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., asked for a renewal of the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program during a Senate subcommittee hearing on Tuesday.
The program, which provides cost-share grants and other assistance to historic Route 66 businesses, is scheduled to end in 2009. Domenici’s bill would extend the program another 10 years.
The legislation number is S.3010. It is co-sponsored by Sen. Jeff Bingaman and Rep. Heather Wilson, both of New Mexico.
Domenici said:
“Route 66 embodies the spirit of the United States during a significant period of our 20th century history … The preservation program is working to save aspects of this major highway, and I appreciate that communities and local groups in New Mexico are leveraging federal resources to build on their own piece of Route 66.”
Karen Taylor-Goodrich, National Park Service director for Visitor and Resource Protection, also testified in favor of the program:
“Collaboration and partnerships help stimulate economic growth and community revitalization across the eight states and 36 congressional districts through which Route 66 passes.
“The partners of the Route 66 Preservation Program have expressed gratitude for the federal government’s support, which has triggered interest from other local governments, nonprofits, and individuals to supplement and boost those funds, thus increasing preservation efforts in
the Route 66 corridor.”
Right now, the bill is in the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Senate Subcommittee on National Parks. There’s no word on when the subcommittee would decide whether to advance the bill.
Do we know who the subcommittee and committee members are?