House Democrats floated a bill Thursday designed to spur job growth by enforcing “made in America” provisions on US transportation and infrastructure projects.

Current law already requires firms to tilt toward US firms for taxpayer-funded transportation projects. But loopholes allow firms to go overseas if there are significant cost differences, and often don’t apply to subcontractors. Now Democrats, with the backing of unions and transportation groups, want to ratchet down on the loopholes and make it harder for companies to use foreign steel and engineering.

Democrats cast the bill as a job-creation effort designed to help flagging employment numbers. Highway and construction projects are viewed on Capitol Hill as a major conduit of jobs growth because of the billions in taxpayer money flowing to all 50 states from the Highway Trust Fund and other programs.

Lawmakers make an example out of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge restoration project, where steel and engineering expertise for the 2.2 mile repair went to Chinese state-owned firms.

“It is appalling, offensive and downright wrong to send our taxpayer dollars to China when they should be invested right here at home,” Rep. “Nick” Joe Rahall (W.Va) the ranking Democrat on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, told reporters Thursday.

The bill requires all rail, bus, and aviation equipment and components paid for by US tax dollars to be made with US materials by 2016. That’s up from current law, which requires 60% US content. It also makes it harder for contractors to go overseas for materials or expertise on highway and bridge projects. Dems also want to extend “Made in America” requirements to loans, loan guarantee and grant programs administered by DOT.

“We have these capabilities here in this country but we are giving them away to our competitors,” Rahall said.

See a summary of the “Invest in American Jobs Act of 2011″ here.

Of course, Democrats don’t control the House and won’t have a chance to get the bill on the floor without Republican help. Rahall said Dems would like to weave the bill, or at least parts of it, into the GOP’s five-year transportation infrastructure bill. Lawmakers have talked up a desire to pay for highway projects with expanded domestic energy production and streamlined funding, but have not unveiled bill text.

Politico reported this morning that a lack of open floor time in the House has lead Republican leaders to put off consideration of the transportation bill until next year.

 

Follow Todd Zwillich on Twitter @toddzwillich