A federal infrastructure package is advancing. On August 10, the United States Senate passed the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act (IIJA) with bipartisan support. This package provides $973 billion over five years, Fiscal Years (FY) 22-26.

$550 billion of the package is allocated to new investments for all modes of transportation, water, power and energy, environmental remediation, public lands, broadband, and resilience. Additionally, the package makes supplemental appropriations to several federal agencies.

Following its passage, the National Association of Counties (NACo) released an analysis of the investments. Click here to view the full NACo analysis.

Broadly, below are major provisions of the bill impactful to counties.

  • Establishes a new, long-term surface transportation reauthorization 
  • Raises the off-system bridge set-aside by five percent, resulting in a $330 million increase to $1.035 billion annually
  • Extends the Secure Rural Schools program for three years
  • Significantly increases the number of competitive grant opportunities via supplemental appropriations to the U.S. Department of Transportation 
  • Increases the cap on Private Activity Bonds from $15 billion to $30 billion
  • Authorizes $14.65 billion for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Drinking Water State Revolving Fund and the Clean Water State Revolving Fund over five years 
  • Provides $1 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program 
  • Fully funds the Safeguarding Tomorrow through Ongoing Risk Mitigation (STORM) Act, which would allow state and local governments to utilize low interest loans for pre-disaster mitigation activities
  • Creates a new population band within the Surface Transportation Block Grant for communities between 50,000 and 200,000 to allow for a more equitable suballocation of funds 
  • Establishes a new competitive grant program for local governments to address and eliminate at-grade rail crossings
  • Creates a new, $40 billion Bridge Investment Program that off-system bridges would be eligible for to repair, replace and rehabilitate the nation’s bridges 
  • Significantly expands Buy America requirements for covered infrastructure materials 
  • Codifies elements of the Trump Administration’s “One Federal Decision” that would require one federal agency to be responsible for issuing a decision resulting from a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review, among other reforms, such as limiting the allowable number of pages for a decision 
  • Increases project cost thresholds for categorical exclusions, thereby making more projects eligible for streamlining 
  • Fails to address the solvency of the Highway Trust Fund, requiring a $118 billion bailout from the general fund of the U.S. Department of the Treasury to fund highway and transit programs 
  • Authorizes $3.5 billion for the Weatherization Assistance Program in FY 2022
  • Includes $5 billion over five years for a new grant program to support activities that reduce the likelihood and consequence of impacts to the electric grid due to extreme weather, wildfire, and natural disaster
  • Establishes a new State and Local Cybersecurity grant program

For more information and resources related to IIJA and infrastructure, click here.

Contributed by: Megan Chuinard | Public Affairs Associate