The Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, is due for an extension on September 30 and is expected to pass as part of H.R. 8337, the Continuing Resolution (CR) bill lawmakers must enact to continue funding the government past September 30 to avoid a government shutdown. September 30 is both the end of the fiscal year and the expiration of the FAST Act.
On September 22, the House of Representatives voted 359 to 57 to pass H.R. 8337. The Senate is expected to vote on the CR this week. Through H.R. 8337, most government agencies remain open through December 11 at current funding levels, however, the extension of the FAST Act authorized in the CR would allow the program to continue at current service levels through September 30, 2021, providing counties some certainty.
Leaders in both parties said this extra year would give Congress time to work on a long-term reauthorization of surface transportation programs, and several proposals are currently in the works, including the Moving Forward Act, a $1.5 trillion investment package that passed out of the House on July 1. Click here to learn more about the Moving Forward Act.
The FAST Act provides both formula and competitive grant programs, administered through the U.S. Department of Transportation. Counties, the nation’s majority owner of roads and bridges, can access funding for highway, transit, and rail projects under the FAST Act.
For more information on surface transportation from the National Association of Counties (NACo), click here.
Contributed by: Megan Chuinard | Public Affairs Associate