May 11, 2021

Member Designated Projects: Committee Receives More than 2,000 Submissions for Consideration as Part of Surface Transportation Bill

WASHINGTON, DC— Two months after announcing a reformed process for Members of the U.S. House of Representatives to submit projects in their districts for consideration to be included in the upcoming surface transportation reauthorization bill, Chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio (D-OR) and Ranking Member of the Committee Sam Graves (R-MO) today announced 318 members have submitted more than 2,000 projects for consideration.

(To view a list of all submissions, click here.)

The Committee intends to move a five-year surface transportation reauthorization bill in the coming weeks to provide critical  investments in our nation’s roads, bridges, rail, and public transit to help communities in every state and territory in the U.S. move forward on badly-needed infrastructure projects.

A closer look at the project submissions:

Total number of project submissions: 2,380

  • From Democratic Members: 1,775
  • From Republican Members: 605

Total number of House Members Participating in Member Designated Projects: 318

  • Democratic Members: 213
  • Republican Members: 105

“I commend my colleagues and their staff who went through the rigorous steps to submit Member Designated Projects under the reformed system, which we adopted to ensure transparency in the process and viability of the projects,” Chair DeFazio said. “It’s not an easy process, but it is important because I strongly believe elected representatives—working with their communities—know the specific infrastructure needs of their district far better than most people in D.C. and can serve as their constituents’ best advocates as Congress crafts infrastructure legislation. I was pleased by the high level of participation, on a bipartisan basis, in this process. Now I look forward to advancing our surface bill soon, complete with Member Designated Projects, and working with all my colleagues to send a transformational bill that creates jobs and improves our communities to the president’s desk.”

“The Committee established a thorough set of requirements for any Members choosing to submit requests, and now posting all submissions in one location will help ensure the highest level of transparency,” said Graves.

As part of the process, Chair DeFazio and Ranking Member Graves asked their colleagues to submit projects with community support that help advance the goals of the surface bill.  The Committee also required all member submissions to include the following information for each project requested:

  • Documentation of whether the project is on the State, Tribal, or territorial transportation improvement program (STIP); and on the metropolitan transportation improvement program (TIP), if applicable
  • Sources of funding for the full share of the cost of the project beyond the amount requested
  • Letter(s) of support from the state department of transportation, or local government, transit agency, or other non-federal sponsor
  • A description of the process that has been or will be followed to provide an opportunity for public comment on the project
  • Project phase (e.g. Planning, Final Design, Construction)
  • NEPA category of action (e.g. Categorical Exclusion, Environmental Assessment, Environmental Impact Statement)
  • Status of environmental review
  • Whether the project has received federal funding previously, and if so the source and amount
  • Certification that the member, their spouse, and other immediate family members do not have a financial interest in the project.

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Press Contact

Kerry Arndt (Majority)

Justin Harclerode (Minority)