The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) updated its Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) program to make it easier for communities and private sponsors to finance new or existing infrastructure projects. The TIFIA program provides credit assistance to transportation projects – like roads, bridges, transit systems, railroads – across the country on advantageous terms than the financial markets. U.S. DOT Secretary Sean Duffy announced the policy change that allows all eligible transportation projects to finance up to 49 percent of their costs through TIFIA loans. This is a significant change from the previous cap at 33 percent, which limited access to the program’s low-interest and long-term financing.
Secretary Duffy described the change as “common sense” and part of a broader effort to deliver infrastructure “easier, quicker, and cheaper.” The decision was based on extensive analysis of program data and following successful pilot programs showing that higher financing levels pose minimal risk to taxpayers. Since its passage into law in 1998, the TIFIA program has helped deliver more than $150 billion in infrastructure investment through over $52 billion in loans.
In the past few years, the TIFIA program has been underutilized which is why AGC supported a provision in the Water Resources Development Act of 2024, which redistributed billions in unused TIFIA funds to state departments of transportation via formula.
For more information, please contact Jonathon Porter.