The Senate Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (T-HUD) Appropriations Subcommittee recently approved an FY 2020 appropriations bill that includes funding to advance transportation infrastructure development.
According to T-HUD, the bill provides for $86.6 billion in total budgetary resources for the U.S. DOT for FY 2020, which is $167 million above the FY 2019 enacted level. The total funding for U.S. DOT includes $25.3 billion in discretionary appropriations and $61.3 billion in obligation limitations. Funding is prioritized for programs that improve the safety, reliability, and efficiency of the transportation system.
The breakdown of funding includes $1 billion for Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grants, which according to U.S. DOT are grants are for investments in surface transportation infrastructure and are to be awarded on a competitive basis for projects that will have a significant local or regional impact; BUILD funding can support roads, bridges, transit, rail, ports or intermodal transportation.
The FY 2020 T-HUD bill also includes $46.3 billion in obligation limitation from the Highway Trust Fund for the Federal-aid Highways Program, consistent with the FAST Act. In addition, the bill includes $2.7 billion discretionary appropriations for highway programs, of which $1.25 billion is for the Surface Transportation Block Grant funds and for the elimination of hazards at railway-highway grade crossings, and $1.25 billion is for bridge repairs in small states with high rates of bridges not in good condition.
The bill also provides $100 million for the Appalachian Development Highway System and $100 million for the Nationally Significant Federal Lands and Tribal Projects grant program. The bill maintains flexibility for state DOTs to repurpose some stagnant project funding for current infrastructure projects.
The bill also includes $2.8 billion for the Federal Railroad Administration, $13 billion for the Federal Transit Administration, and $972 million in total budgetary resources for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The House T-HUD subcommittee approved a similar bill back in May of this year for FY 2020. The House passed the bill as part of an appropriations package in June.
--------
SOURCE: U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations
