President Donald Trump's administration is rescinding its call for an extra layer of federal scrutiny whenever states seek changes to their transportation plans, after the proposed requirement sparked concern that some payments for roads, bridges, and transit would be delayed or even halted due to policy differences.
Most of the federal money used for transportation projects flows to states almost automatically through formulas established by Congress that consider population and other factors. For decades, states have had widespread autonomy to set their own priorities and spend the funds on projects they deem as most worthy.
But under the recent policy the administration put in place and reversed this week, no additional money was to be allocated until lawyers in the U.S. Department of Transportation's Washington headquarters signed off on any changes. Such amendments to state transportation plans were already subject to a federal review, but it was usually a swift process from a regional office to confirm they didn't violate any U.S. laws.
State transportation departments learned of the reversal Friday through an email from Joung Lee, deputy director and chief policy officer for the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Lee said the Trump administration had confirmed that the review process was being returned to the regional level without the need for lawyers in Washington to sign off.
"As this remains a continuing development, we will keep you posted on any further updates," Lee wrote.
The U.S. Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration didn't respond to emails seeking details about why the headquarters-level review was implemented and later reversed.
The Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations, which represents organizations that oversee local and regional transportation projects that get federal funding, told its members last week that at least six states had reported learning about an anticipated pause in getting their plans approved due to the extra review.
"In areas with large-scale projects or narrow construction windows, even short delays can cascade into prolonged setbacks, increased project costs, and missed opportunities to address critical transportation needs," AMPO said in the memo.
AMPO followed up the next day with new information from the Federal Highway Administration, which confirmed there was an ongoing administrative review of the projects but that "there is no pause."
Modifications such as adding or removing lanes of a road or changes in cost estimates or supplies could have required a federal review. Advocates for transportation projects said the sheer volume of projects had spurred concerns that much-needed federal funding would be delayed even as many states are set to enter construction season.
"You're having to get approval from an office that didn't have to approve things before," said Steve Davis, vice president of transportation policy for Smart Growth America, a nonprofit that advocates for safer streets and other community improvement efforts. "I don't see any way that this does not slow down and delay projects."
The metropolitan planning organization in Chicago alone, for example, sends about eight amendments a year to its transportation improvement plan, and each includes about 300 different projects. That is just one of 410 metropolitan planning organizations across the country that set their own plans and seek amendments to them throughout the year.
Adie Tomer, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution's metropolitan policy program Brookings Metro, said that even more concerning than delays was the possibility that the U.S. Transportation Department might try to redirect projects already approved by states in order to promote the administration's policy objectives.
Trump has signed executive orders seeking to end government support for programs promoting diversity, equity and inclusion. And Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy sent a memo that calls for prohibiting governments that get Department of Transportation funds from imposing vaccine and mask mandates and requiring their cooperation with the administration's immigration enforcement efforts. It wasn't immediately clear whether those orders would have any impact on the approval of amendments to state transportation plans.
"Even the threat of "(transportation improvement program) amendments not being approved can have a chilling effect on project delivery," Tomer said. "And if project delivery is delayed, that means higher costs for the project and, in the end, the taxpayers."
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