Business news in brief

The chairman of the House Transportation Committee said passing a bill to pay for America's aging roads and bridges will be a top priority next year but ruled out a gasoline tax increase or motorist user fees as the way to do it. Republican U.S. Rep. Bill Shuster, from Western Pennsylvania, has previously said a vehicle-miles-traveled tax should be considered as an alternative to increasing the 18.4-cents-per-gallon gas tax, given the rise in fuel-efficient cars that makes taxing by the gallon rather than the mile less effective. Looking ahead to a new GOP-controlled Congress, Shuster now says both proposals are unworkable. - AP

Water utility Aqua Pennsylvania, a subsidiary of Bryn Mawr-based Aqua America Inc., said it completed a $217 million capital program for 2014, with most of the money going to infrastructure improvements around the state. Projects included $127.5 million spent in the company's Southeastern Pennsylvania operating division, which is composed of parts of Berks, Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery Counties. - Reid Kanaley

A Philadelphia flight to Manchester, N.H., on Monday morning returned to Philadelphia International Airport after one of its two engines failed. The US Airways Express flight, operated by Republic Airlines, landed safely at Philadelphia and taxied to a gate. Seventy-nine passengers and crew members deplaned normally and were put on a new flight to Manchester. An American Airlines spokeswoman said the cause of the engine failure on the Embraer 175 was being investigated. - Bob Fernandez

Subaru of America Inc., headquartered in Cherry Hill, said it expects to have sold a company-record 500,000 vehicles in 2014. Subaru of America is a subsidiary of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. of Japan. The company has about 600 retailers in the United States and held 3.5 percent of the U.S. vehicle market for November. Market leader General Motors sold 2.7 million cars and trucks in the first 11 months. - Reid Kanaley

Vermont's only nuclear plant stopped sending power to the New England grid Monday following more than 42 years of producing electricity. The shutdown came just after noon as the Vermont Yankee plant completed its 30th operating cycle, when workers inserted control rods into the reactor core and stopped the nuclear reaction process, the plant's owner said. Bill Mohl, the president of Entergy Wholesale Commodities, said economic factors, especially related to the natural gas market in the Northeast, were the primary reasons for the shutdown. - AP

Computer Sciences Corp. reached a proposed settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission over an accounting probe, agreeing to pay $190 million and adjust its financial statements for three fiscal years. CSC said the "understanding" reached with SEC staff will result in a pretax charge of about $200 million this quarter. The company said it won't admit or deny the allegations, and the SEC will file an administrative enforcement action alleging violations of securities laws provisions including antifraud and reporting. - Bloomberg News

Fiat Chrysler is recalling about 67,000 model year 2006 and 2007 pickups because of a problem that could prevent the cars from starting, or cause them to move when the ignition key is turned. The company said a wire in the clutch ignition interlock switch could break. That could keep the truck from starting, or, if drivers don't follow recommended starting procedures, the truck could move when the ignition key is turned. Chrysler said one death was associated with the problem. The company is recalling Dodge Dakota, Dodge Ram 1500, 2500, and 3500, and Mitsubishi Raider pickups that were made between July 2005 and June 2006. Nearly 55,000 of them are in the U.S. - AP

Business groups trying to overturn a new California law that bans single-use plastic bags say they have collected more than enough signatures to put their referendum question on the November 2016 ballot. If the referendum qualifies, the nation's first statewide ban on single-use plastic bags will be suspended until voters weigh in, effectively buying plastic bag manufacturers more time. The plastic bag manufacturing trade group American Progressive Bag Alliance said it will turn in more than 800,000 petition signatures to county registrars. The group needs about 505,000 valid signatures to qualify. - AP

Cable pioneer John Malone and his wife, Leslie, gave $42.5 million to Colorado State University to launch a stem-cell research program, the university said. It was the largest gift in the Fort Collins, Colo., university's history. - Bob Fernandez

The IRS said taxpayers can start filing their 2014 tax returns on Jan. 20. The agency says tax season will start on time despite a last-minute tax law passed by Congress and signed by President Obama. Earlier this month, Congress passed a bill extending more than 50 tax breaks that had expired at the start of the year. The new law will let taxpayers claim the breaks when they file their 2014 returns. Each year, millions of taxpayers file returns during the first few weeks of tax season so they can get quick refunds. In recent years, the IRS says, it was able to issue most tax refunds within 21 days, if the returns were filed electronically. - AP