Senate panel approves 6-year highway bill

News and Observer:  WASHINGTON — A Senate panel on Thursday approved a bill to keep federal highway programs going for the next six years, but it remained unclear whether Congress would act in time to prevent a disruption in transportation aid to states this summer.

The Environment and Public Works Committee approved a bill that would keep transportation spending at current levels, plus inflation, in a rare burst of bipartisan bonhomie, with Democrats and Republicans lavishing praise on each other. No one spoke against the measure, which passed on a voice vote.

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