US DoT Allocates $5.4 Billion For Bridge Infrastructure Fund, Scraps Diversity, Climate Criteria For Applicants: Report

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDoT) has announced the availability of $5.4 billion in grant funding for the construction, replacement, or repair of bridges across the U.S.

What Happened: The $5.4 billion funding, sanctioned under the 2021 infrastructure law, will be accessible for bridge projects. The Federal Highway Administration is offering the new funding to repair or replace about 42,000 deteriorating bridges, with $4.9 billion for major projects and up to $500 million for rural bridges, reported Freight Waves.

Meanwhile, Reuters reported that the USDoT, however, has decided to remove climate change, environmental justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) requirements from the grant application criteria.

This decision comes after a series of similar actions, such as ending the use of race or gender as criteria for awarding federal highway and transit project funding to disadvantaged small businesses. In April, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy cautioned that states risked losing transportation funding if they failed to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement or continued to uphold DEI programs.

Under the Biden administration, bridge grant applicants had to address climate change, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, create good-paying, union-friendly jobs, and support inclusive local economic development.

Why It Matters: The removal of diversity requirements from the grant application process is a significant shift in the Biden administration’s approach to infrastructure funding. A federal requirement emphasized job creation with union choice and support for inclusive local economic development, including minority- and women-owned businesses. However, a Kentucky judge ruled in September that the 1983 Disadvantaged Business Enterprise program, which presumed such businesses as disadvantaged, violated the Constitution's equal protection clause.

These changes are part of a broader shift in the Biden administration’s infrastructure policies. Earlier in May, Secretary Duffy criticized the Biden-era fuel economy standards, alleging that they constituted a “backdoor electric vehicle mandate.” This criticism reflects a broader debate over the Biden administration’s regulatory approach to infrastructure and transportation.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.