Cities will be key to allocating the $1.1 trillion in the new Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act signed into law by President Joe Biden Monday. That’s what Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg told local government leaders Thursday while speaking at the National League of Cities conference. “We’re really going to be looking to you to deliver,” said Buttigieg. DOT will be overseeing much of the implementation of the new bill. The new law requires the creation of about 40 new programs as well as the expansion of existing programs, Buttigieg said. The law features $550 billion in new federal money for projects spanning from water to roads and transit, and $550 billion in reauthorized funding for surface transportation. … Buttigieg promised that the department would make the federal grant application process as user friendly as possible and minimize competition among cities. He also encouraged local officials to join together to respond to regional grants and said the federal government would be looking to the locals to define regions.
Source: The Bond Buyer
