Senate funding proposal would create transportation funding cliff for counties

Key Takeaways

On August 8, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed a proposal to extend government funding and many expiring program authorities until December 11, 2026. Notably, this bill would provide a short-term extension of many federal surface transportation programs authorized in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA; P.L. 117-58). However, the bill would not extend the advance appropriations for many transportation programs made in Division J of the IIJA. This means that many programs would lose portions of their funding, while many other programs would have their funding lapse altogether.

Background

Every five years, Congress negotiates and passes a surface transportation authorization bill that provides authorities and hundreds of billions of dollars in funding for U.S. Department of Transportation programs that aid road, bridge and safety projects. As principal stakeholders in the nation’s transportation system, counties receive a share of that funding to support important infrastructure projects.  

The IIJA, passed in 2021, is set to expire on September 30, 2026. As Congress stalls on developing a new, comprehensive highway bill, congressional leaders have proposed a short-term extension of IIJA, which has been included in a larger Senate continuing resolutions package.  

Funding Cliff

A significant share of funding in IIJA was made through advance appropriations for fiscal years (FYs) 2022 through 2026. In other words, Congress pre-provided this funding for future fiscal years without the need to appropriate for it through the annual appropriations process. This mechanism is unusual for a surface transportation bill, which typically funds programs either through the Highway Trust Fund or by authorizing programs that Congress later funds through annual appropriations.

Some programs, like the core highway programs under the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), received a boost to their funding under Division J. Other programs, like the Bridge Formula Program, were stood up and funded entirely through Division J.

The Senate’ short term IIJA extension does not include advance appropriations made under Division J of the law. If the final CR/surface transportation extension passed by Congress fails to include Division J funding, then overall funding levels would be reduced by more than 15 percent. Programs funding passenger rail would be almost entirely cut, as would key county priority programs like the Bridge Formula Program and the Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) program.

NACo’s Advocacy

NACo has urged congressional leaders to include an extension of advance authorizations in any continuing resolution. The cut in overall transportation funding would jeopardize improvements and investments in county-owned infrastructure nationwide and delay critical projects.

As the Senate considers the proposed continuing resolution, counties ask lawmakers to include Division J advance appropriations to prevent a funding cliff for counties and other transportation stakeholders. NACo will also continue to push for the passage of a multi-year, comprehensive surface transportation bill that includes key county priorities.