ARTBA:MoreThan36KTransportation ImprovementProjectsMoveForward

INFRASTRUCTURE from page 100 prize direct access to federal funding, without the need for allocations from their states.

“And there’s plenty more of the competitive money coming,” wrote Brookings staff members.

By October 2022, only 7 percent of competitivefundinghadbeenawarded. Brookings advised that if local practitioners want to maximize their chances to receive federal funds, they should partner with states.

“State officials control larger pots of funding and may not require detailed applicationstoaccessthatfunding,”the institute said. “By contrast, federal competitive programs are typically smaller and over-subscribed.”

State funding received by federal formula also can serve as matching funds when localities need to qualify for federal funds.

“With state capital budgets still adjusting to IIJA’s increased funding levels, now is the time for local leaders to build strong ties with their counterparts in state capitals.”

Industry Helping Push Funds Along

Theconstructionindustryitselfhasa big part to play in the transition from numbers on paper to boots on the ground. Contractor organizations, such asARTBA,arepullingachairuptothe funding table in praise of IIJA.

The association reported to Congress this past spring that more than 36,000 transportation improvement projects have moved forward.All this in the past 16 months as IIJA implementation continues, said Paula Hammond,ARTBAchair.

She acknowledged that inflation is a huge stumbling block for states trying to deliver on projects.

“Increased material costs and supply chain challenges have had a dilutive impact on the law’s investments,” Hammond said. “This situation would have been dramatically worse had Congress opted for another flat-funded extension of surface transportation programs. Our analysis shows there has been real market growth over the last year.”

Newandwell-meaningIIJArequirements related to expansion of Buy America are creating challenges of their own, added Hammond.

“If Buy America provisions are not pursued with stakeholder input and articulated clearly, it could have the opposite outcome and result in unnecessary project delays.”

She concluded that the initial data reveal IIJA’s highway, bridge and public transportation investments are working as intended.

“Many more benefits for the American people are still to come,” added Hammond.

Industry’s biggest headache remains attracting and keeping the massive labor force numbers needed to make state projects a reality.

“Government, infrastructure companies and workforce development must work together to expand the talent pipeline,” said Brookings.

The Biden administration has spent two years talking about the importance of workforce development within infrastructure industries.

“The reality is that Congress mostly left state and local infrastructure owners and operators to solve talent issues on their own.”

Brookings added that the list of workforce-related issues is long and difficult. It’s a two-fold challenge:

“First, they cannot find enough new talent — particularly younger workers, whomaynotknowthesecareersexist.”

This same pool of potential workers may lack flexible training pathways to enter the field. Workers under the age of 24 represent only 11 percent of the country’s infrastructure workforce, the institute noted.

“Second, employers are struggling to hold onto existing talent,” said the Brookings researchers.

It’s projected that 1.7 million infrastructure workers will either retire or permanently leave the industry annually over the next decade.With 16.6 million infrastructure workers employed nationally, that means the entire workforce will essentially turn over in the next 10 years.

The result will be huge gaps in knowledge and retention — as well as potentially productivity.

“State and local leaders must shift from short-term, business-as-usual approaches,” said Brookings.

These leaders should instead “focus on longer-term strategies to enhance opportunities for workers and meet employer demands.”

That means planning and addressing workforce needs over time rather than throwing money at individual projects in the short term.

States must find ways to utilize the flexibility of federal funding and invest in worker training and retention.

Brookings believes these efforts also need to involve community outreach, support services and reskilling, to start. 

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