Sta tus of Sta te a nd F eder al Suppor t for Safe Rou te s to School

S T A T U S O F S T A T E A N D F E D E R A L S U P P O R T F O R S A F E R O U T E S T O S C H O O L

An SRTS plan is not required to receive Minnesota state and/or federal SRTS infrastructure grants but is highly recommended. A school and/or community with an SRTS plan will be much better able to compete for limited funding and resources to implement the identified recommendations. Please be aware, with anticipated future changes in federal and state transportation laws, the following funding sources below are likely to change. Please contact WCI or MnDOT for updated funding information at any point in the future.

FEDERAL

In previous federal transportation laws, the SRTS program was a separately-funded category, independent of the Transportation Enhancements program (TE - bikeways, trails, sidewalks, streetscapes reconstruction, etc.) and Scenic Byways program. In 2012, Congress passed a federal transportation bill entitled Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21). This law combined the SRTS, TE and Scenic Byways programs into one funding source called Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP). TAP is funded from the Highway Account of the Highway Trust Fund at an amount equal to 2% of the total amount of federalaid highways each fiscal year. Each state was charged with developing their own program for soliciting projects to be funded by the TAP funds allocated to them. MAP-21 states also have the option of redirecting 50% of TAP to other transportation projects.

Late in 2015, Congress passed a five-year transportation spending bill called the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act), which was then signed into law by the President on December 4th. It is the first law enacted in over 10 years that provides long-term funding certainty for surface transportation. Overall, the FAST Act largely maintains current program structures and funding for SRTS. The only difference is that the Transportation Alternative Program, (TAP) which provides SRTS infrastructure funding, has been renamed Transportation Alternatives (TA). The FAST Act does include two modest funding increases (4% over the life of the Act) for TA/SRTS programs.14 WCI can assist communities and school districts that apply for federal TA and SRTS infrastructure funds.

14

US Department of Transportation. “The Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act or "FAST Act"”, webpage. https://www.transportation.gov/fastact#sthash.aDqlysIt.dpuf. Last updated January 12, 2016. Accessed on January 14, 2016.

Chapter 2: About Safe Routes to School (SRTS) | P a g e 51