September 5, 2025
The Honorable Shelley Moore Capito
Chairman
Environment and Public Works Committee
U.S. Senate
The Honorable Sam Graves
Chairman
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee
U.S. House of Representatives
The Honorable Sheldon Whitehouse
Ranking Member
Environment and Public Works Committee
U.S. Senate
The Honorable Rick Larsen
Ranking Member
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee
U.S. House of Representatives
The Honorable Kevin Cramer
Chairman
Environment and Public Works Committee
Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee
U.S. Senate
The Honorable David Rouzer
Chairman
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee
Highways and Transit Subcommittee
U.S. House of Representatives
The Honorable Angela Alsobrooks
Ranking Member
Environment and Public Works Committee
Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee
U.S. Senate
The Honorable Eleanor Holmes Norton
Ranking Member
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee
Highways and Transit Subcommittee
U.S. House of Representatives
Dear Chairman Capito, Ranking Member Whitehouse, Chairman Graves, Ranking Member Larsen, Chairman Cramer, Ranking Member Alsobrooks, Chairman Rouzer, and Ranking Member Norton:
On behalf of United for Infrastructure (UFI) and its Steering Committee, we write to thank you for your bipartisan leadership in strengthening America’s infrastructure and to offer our recommendations for the next surface transportation reauthorization. UFI is a national nonprofit coalition representing businesses, labor, elected officials and their membership organizations, think tanks, and advocates committed to advancing infrastructure policies that enhance economic competitiveness, improve safety for all users, support a skilled workforce, and build resilience into the systems that connect our nation.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) addressed decades of underinvestment not only in our transportation, freight, rail, and transit systems but also in the nation’s water infrastructure and broadband networks, delivering benefits to millions of Americans. These investments have improved mobility, strengthened supply chains, expanded access to clean and reliable drinking water, and closed the digital divide for households and businesses. The next surface transportation reauthorization is a critical opportunity to sustain this momentum, address persistent challenges in funding and project delivery, and ensure that America’s infrastructure, across all modes and sectors, meets the needs of current and future generations.
We respectfully recommend the following priorities:
1. Maintain Robust, Sustained Federal Funding
IIJA-level funding must serve as the baseline for the next reauthorization. Federal investment in infrastructure produces outsized returns: the U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that every $1 billion invested in highway and bridge infrastructure supports at least 13,000 jobs across multiple industries, from construction to manufacturing to logistics. Investments in public transit and passenger and freight rail systems similarly generate benefits to our local and national economies and support a robust workforce.
ASCE’s 2024 Bridging the Gap report illustrates the risks of reducing investment. Under its “Snapback” scenario, where funding returns to pre-IIJA levels, the United States could lose roughly 344,000 jobs in a single year compared to a “Continuing to Act” scenario, which maintains IIJA-level funding in the next authorization. In other words, the historic 2021 law created not only a much-needed step forward but also a new baseline that Congress should maintain and expand upon moving forward.
Stable, predictable funding also protects American households. ASCE estimates that maintaining current infrastructure investment levels could save the average household $700 annually from 2024-43, while reverting to pre-IIJA funding levels could result in nearly $53,500 in additional costs per household over the same time period.
In addition, robust federal investment acts as a catalyst for private-sector capital, unlocking billions of dollars in additional funding for infrastructure projects. By de-risking major initiatives, federal dollars attract private capital that brings innovation, efficiency, and expanded delivery capacity. Expanding tools such as financing authorities, credit support, and private activity bonds, in concert with sustained public funding and appropriate protections, will multiply economic returns, accelerate project delivery, and extend the benefits of federal investment to more communities.
For all these reasons, sustained, and ideally increased, federal investment is essential to keeping our country’s infrastructure safe, competitive, and resilient.
2. Ensure Highway Trust Fund Solvency Through Modern User-Fee Models
The Highway Trust Fund is central to federal transportation programs but faces structural insolvency without a sustainable revenue stream. We urge Congress to adopt modern user-fee approaches that reflect evolving vehicle technologies and travel patterns. This could include:
● Expanding road usage charge pilots and transitioning them to permanent programs,
● Implementing equitable alternative fuel vehicle fees, and
● Aligning user fees with inflation to prevent future shortfalls.
A long-term funding solution will protect critical programs from disruptive funding gaps and enable the federal government to meet its commitments to state, local, and tribal partners.
3. Streamlined Permitting and Approval Processes
Slow, unpredictable permitting undermines the benefits of federal investment. Federal environmental reviews often add 4.5 years to project timelines, with major projects taking seven years or more. Research from Texas A&M Transportation Institute shows that each month of delay can add 1.3% to construction costs — roughly $129,000 per $10 million in value.
We support reforms that preserve environmental protections while making reviews more predictable and efficient, such as:
● Enforcing deadlines for permitting decisions,
● Expediting judicial reviews and agency actions, and
● Expanding categorical exclusions and expediting their certification.
Faster project delivery means putting people to work sooner, reducing taxpayer costs, and delivering infrastructure benefits more quickly to communities.
Faster project delivery means putting people to work sooner, reducing taxpayer costs, and delivering infrastructure benefits more quickly to communities.
4. Prioritize Investments in Resilience, Innovation, and Workforce
More frequent and severe natural disasters threaten lives, disrupt supply chains, and cost billions. Congress should continue and expand funding for programs that strengthen the resiliency of our nation’s infrastructure and tomorrow’s workforce. Opportunities include:
● Continuing and expanding funding for programs such as the Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, Efficient, and Cost-saving Transportation (PROTECT) program,
● Supporting research into extending asset life, and
● Investing in workforce development to ensure communities have the expertise to plan, build, maintain, and operate resilient infrastructure and transportation networks.
Infrastructure is the foundation of our economy, national security, and global leadership. Maintaining and building upon IIJA’s funding levels — while streamlining delivery, ensuring sustainable revenue, strengthening resilience, preparing the future workforce, and attracting private investment — will support communities of all sizes and ensure America remains the global economic leader.
We appreciate your leadership and look forward to working with you to deliver a surface transportation reauthorization that meets the needs of today and anticipates the demands of tomorrow.
Sincerely,
Ross van Dongen
Director, United for Infrastructure
United for Infrastructure Steering Committee Members:
PDF Version of Letter
TTD Surface Transportation Policy Statement