Unobligated federal funds to be redirected to states
Idaho projects eligible The Obama Administration decision will enable ITD to reallocate unobligated funds for two highway projects that were "earmarked" by Congress from 2003 to 2007, according to Matt Moore. The two unobligated projects total $2.7 million. They are the Cheyenne Road Connector project in Pocatello and aa student safety project at the College of Southern Idaho in Twin Falls. The CSI project has approximately $11,000 in unobligated funds and is complete. The Cheyenne Connector project has the same remainder. ITD has until Dec. 31 to reallocate those funds to other projects. ITD is evaluating the options and will submit a plan for use of the funds within the same urban areas before Oct. 1, Moore explains. Unobligated earmarked funds from other states are not available to Idaho unless there is a remainder after Dec. 31. Those funds would be redistributed nationally. |
The Obama Administration this week announced that it won’t allow infrastructure funds to sit idle as a result of stalled earmark projects at a time when hundreds of thousands of construction workers are looking for work. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is making over $470 million in unspent earmarks immediately available to states for projects that will create jobs and help improve transportation across the country.
“My administration will continue to do everything we can to put Americans back to work,” said President Barack Obama. “We’re not going to let politics stand between construction workers and good jobs repairing our roads and bridges.”
“We are freeing up these funds so states can get down to the business of moving transportation projects forward and putting our friends and neighbors back to work,” said Secretary LaHood.
President Obama has vowed to veto any bill that comes to his desk with earmarks and would support legislation to permanently ban earmarks. But $473 million in highway earmarks from FY2003-2006 appropriations acts remain unspent years later. Those acts contain provisions that authorize the Secretary to make the unused funds available for
eligible surface transportation projects. Effective today, state departments of transportation will have the ability to use their
unspent earmarked highway funds, some of which are nearly 10 years old, on any eligible highway, transit, passenger rail, or port project.
States must identify the projects they plan to use the funds for by October 1, and must obligate them by December 31, 2012.
“Particularly in these difficult fiscal times, states will be able to put these dollars to good use,” said Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez. “These funds will create jobs in the short term and help bring about what President Obama called ‘an America built to last.’”
To ensure that this funding is quickly put to good use to improve our nation’s infrastructure, funds not obligated by the December 31 deadline will be proportionally redistributed in FY 2013 to states that met the deadline.
A list of available funds by state can be accessed here.
Published 8-24-2012