U.S. Reps. Abby Finkenauer (D-IA) and Clay Higgins (R-LA) introduced this week the Fixing America’s Bridges Act, which proposes the re-establishment of a federal funding program to aid repairs and replacements of structurally deficient local bridges.
The program is specifically meant to help those municipalities that own bridges but have trouble affording costly maintenance of them. To do so, it would re-establish the Highway Bridge Replacement and Rehabilitation Program, providing federal grant money to states to repair or replace bridges found to be in poor condition by the Federal Highway Administration. Local communities would also see funds set-aside to help locally-owned bridges that aren’t a part of the federal aid highway system. Further, the federal cost-share for local bridges would rise from 80 percent to 90 percent, shifting more of the burden off local entities.
“Having visited many of our local structurally deficient bridges, I know first-hand how big of an impact we can make by securing much-needed help for our communities,” Finkenauer said. “Our local engineers and communities are sending us a clear message they need help, and we can do that while making our infrastructure safer and supporting good-paying American jobs. I thank Congressman Higgins for partnering with me as we deliver critical aid to our communities that desperately need their bridges to be fixed.”
Finkenauer’s home state of Iowa is home to more structurally deficient bridges than any other state in the country. Currently, nearly 20 percent — 5,067 bridges in all — of the state’s bridges are structurally deficient, and most are not a part of the federal highway system.
“Investing in safe and reliable infrastructure promotes economic growth and benefits our communities,” Higgins said. “This certainly includes America’s bridges. Our legislation expands federal infrastructure resources and prioritizes bridge replacement based on structural integrity. Reestablishing the Highway Bridge Replacement and Rehabilitation Program would greatly benefit many bridges in Louisiana, including the I-10 Calcasieu River Bridge.”
The effort is currently supported by several associations, including the National Association of Counties, National Association of County Engineers, North America’s Building Trades Unions, and the Soy Transportation Coalition.