Telling the County Infrastructure Story 

Key Takeaways

Every five years, Congress rewrites the rules for how the federal government invests in roads, bridges, transit and safety. The surface transportation reauthorization is now upon us. It will either solve a long-standing structural problem for counties or deepen it. 

Our job together is to make sure every member of Congress and the White House understand the imperative of investing in county-based infrastructure.

Counties maintain 44 percent of all public road miles and nearly 40 percent of the nation’s 620,000-plus bridges.

We connect farms to markets, factories to ports, families to jobs. We support the transit systems that residents depend on. And we bear significant responsibility for the safety of the roads and bridges people drive every day.

Yet, county budgets are being eroded from three sides at once: unrelenting cost inflation, federal permitting delays that stall ready projects and competition for labor and materials often directed to federally subsidized state projects.

In Mississippi, a county supervisor recently noted asphalt has jumped from $87 to $145 per ton. In New York, the budget that once paved 40 road miles each year now covers 10. A small bridge in Minnesota cost $1.5 million in 2019. Today: $2.7 million. Same structure. Almost double the price.

This is not just a county problem. It is a national problem. County roads and bridges carry the freight, the commuters and the commerce that drive the American economy. When our infrastructure fails, the costs ripple outward — to farmers, manufacturers, energy producers, tourists and every community connected by a county road.

NACo is making a straightforward ask of Congress: Invest in county infrastructure that keeps America moving and competitive. That means robust federal funding for locally owned roads and bridges, both through formula funding and discretionary grants. It means a greater county voice in statewide transportation plans and local project selection. And it means streamlined project delivery so that when federal dollars arrive, inflation doesn’t erode them before shovels hit the ground.

Every sector of the American economy — agriculture, energy, logistics, manufacturing, tourism — runs on infrastructure that counties own and maintain. This has a price tag for us all. The reauthorization is the moment for Congress to match this reality with real investment.

Now is our moment. County officials across the country are urged to engage their congressional delegations today. Share your local numbers. Showcase your local projects. Ask your business and community partners to discuss the consequences of inaction. 

The story is ours to tell. Let’s tell it together.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​