House Transportation Chair Sam Graves (R-Mo.) announced this week that he is targeting April 29 as the start date for efforts to reauthorization the surface transportation bill and is negotiating a topline number between $500 billion and $550 billion, Politico reports. The bill would cover a five-year period that starts on October 1, 2026.
The Council on Environmental Quality issued its Permitting Technology Action Plan, which seeks to modernize federal environmental review and permitting processes for a wide range of infrastructure projects, according to a White House press release. The action fulfills a directive from President Trump for agencies to make maximum use of technology in federal environmental reviews and permitting processes, according to the CEQ’s Permitting Innovation Center website.
The U.S. Department of Transportation recently approved 180 infrastructure grants worth $3.2 billion from more than 3,200 projects that were awarded by the previous administration without project agreements. USDOT announced that it has approved 329 grants so far this year.
Those approved grants include a wide range of modal administration programs, from airport improvement grants to rail, port, and highway infrastructure initiatives.
The National Governor’s Association (NGA) report in their 2025 State of the State or Territory addresses that Governors showcased both infrastructure success stories in their jurisdictions and set out legislative and other priorities for the year ahead for different types of infrastructure. Common themes emerging from the remarks include the importance of infrastructure investment in supporting long-term economic growth, sustainability and quality of life for future generations.
The American Society of Civil Engineers’ (ASCE) has been grading the condition of America’s infrastructure since 1998 with most report cards showing little headway being made in addressing existing needs. With the significant increase in Federal funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act many looked to see if it helped lift the condition of the various infrastructure categories. According to ASCE’s most recent report, the Biden-era infusion of federal funding helped improve the condition of the country’s infrastructure, bringing it up from a “C-” to a “C” grade. It shows grade increases in eight of the 18 categories assessed, many of which had long been stuck at a “D-” or “D.”
Reports out of Washington about the slow pace of spending from the massive infrastructure funding Congress approved and the President signed continue to put pressure on federal and state agencies to get the money out. The huge influx of money has been a boon to consultants to plan and design projects eligible for the federal spending. The American Road and Transportation Builders Association continues to track the flow of construction funds.
Four national trade associations petitioned the White House to make improvements in its implementation of “made in America” requirements for construction products and materials. They noted their members have encountered significant difficulty in navigating the White House Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) “opaque and unbalanced implementation,” risking delays and cost increases for vital housing, transportation, and water infrastructure projects funded by the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act.
Taking stock of an issue he has made a key domestic priority, President Joe Biden on Wednesday touted his administration’s progress in updating roads, bridges, railroads and more at a convening of his national infrastructure advisory council at the White House on Wednesday. The council includes senior executives from across sectors who advise the president on securing the nation’s infrastructure.
More than 222,000 U.S. bridges need major repair work or should be replaced, according to the American Road & Transportation Builders Association’s (ARTBA) analysis of the recently released U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) 2023 National Bridge Inventory (NBI) database. That figure represents 36 percent of all U.S. structures.
Total construction spending in May increased by 0.9 percent from April and 2.4 percent year-over-year as gains in manufacturing construction and single-family homebuilding offset a downturn in major infrastructure segments, according to an analysis today by the Associated General Contractors of America of new federal data. Association officials cautioned that unclear and contradictory government regulations were slowing a variety of publicly funded projects and they urged the Biden administration to speed the awarding of contracts..