On November 15, President Biden signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), enacting the legislation into law following a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives, where the bipartisan infrastructure package passed 228-206 earlier this month. These final steps follow the August 10th U.S.  Senate passage of the bill in a 69-30 vote. The IIJA provides $973 billion over five years from Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 through FY 2026, including $550 billion in new investments for transportation, water, power and energy, environmental remediation, public lands, broadband and resilience.

Of the $550 billion, $284 billion will go toward all modes of transportation, with the remaining $266 billion invested in other physical infrastructure sectors. These transportration funds represent roughly 52 percent of all new resources provided for in the bill to modernize and improve transportation infrastructure, with the majority of funding reserved for highways, roads and bridges. Investments include:

• Roads & Bridges: $110 billion
• Transit: $39 billion
• Rail: $66 billion
• Safety: $11 billion
• Airports: $25 billion
• Ports & Waterways: $17 billion
• Electric Vehicle Charging: $7.5 billion
• Electric Buses: $7.5 billion
• Reconnecting Communities: $1 billion

Counties can access IIJA transportation funds in three general ways: 1. Meeting certain eligibility criteria for formula funds; 2. Receiving suballocations from state governments; and/or 3. Applying to the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) or a state department of transportation for competitive grant opportunities. The IIJA also provides just over $100 billion in direct, competitive grant opportunities through USDOT to local governments over the life of the bill.

In addition to transportation, the legislation also provides the following:

• Water: $55 billion
• Broadband: $65 billion
• Energy & Power: $73 billion
• Environmental Remediation: $21 billion
• Western Water Infrastructure: $8.3 billion
• Resiliency: $46 billion

The IIJA is a major victory for counties, who worked closely with our partners in Congress throughout the legislative process to ensure county priorities weer included. Owning and operating 44 percent of public roads and 38 percent of the nation’s bridges while directly supporting 78 percent of public transit systems and 34 percent of airports, counties are play a significant role in the nation’s infrastructure network. Annually, counties invest $134 billion in the construction of infrastructure and the maintenance and operation of public works. Though we are doing our part at the local level, we must rely on the intergovernmental partnership to meet our many public infrastructure responsibilitites, as well as to reach our federal, state and local shared goal of improving the nation’s infrastructure.

The next step for the IIJA is implementation. NACo is working closely with the U.S. Department of Transportation and other federal agencies impacted in the legislation to ensure America’s counties have the information and guidance necessary to successfully execute the policies and programs in the IIJA. At the local level, we know that bipartisan solutions provide long-term benefits, and counties applaud Congress and the White House for working across the aisle to enact this historic investment in America’s infrastructure into law.

Additional Resources  

• Legislative Analysis for Counties: The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
• NACo Statement on Passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
• Federal Transportation & Infrastructure Policy Hub for Counties