Final week (Thursday July 17, 2025) US Transportation Secretary Sean P Duffy introduced collectively Congressional members and infrastructure stakeholders in a first-of-its-kind convention to foster collaboration on priorities forward of Congress’s Floor Transportation Reauthorization course of later this fall.
“Our mission is to construct as shortly and as a lot as doable. So, we’re working via a historic backlog as quick as doable to ensure we will get cash out the door to all of you to ensure these tasks are shifting and shifting shortly,” stated Duffy.
Throughout his remarks, Secretary Duffy outlined President Trump’s America is Constructing Once more agenda constructed on 4 key pillars. The primary pillar focuses on enhancing transportation security throughout all modes. The second pillar emphasizes accelerating mission supply for transportation tasks via complete reforms. This consists of reforming the Nationwide Environmental Coverage Act (NEPA) and streamlining allowing processes. The third pillar facilities on rising alternatives via strategic funding in transportation infrastructure that promotes sturdy financial progress. The fourth pillar strengthens partnerships with states and different key stakeholders to enhance transportation outcomes throughout the nation.
Home Transportation Committee Chairman Sam Graves emphasised alignment with the administration’s priorities: “I’m listening to quite a lot of the identical themes that we’re utilizing in the home, which is excellent information… Home priorities, the highest priorities – 4 of them. We wish to return to fundamentals and that’s formulation funding. That’s essentially the most environment friendly solution to get the cash to the states. We wish to minimize the purple tape. Time is cash.”
Graves confirmed an aggressive timeline, stating the Home will “have it off the home flooring by the top of the yr” after processing “11,000 requests proper now” from members and stakeholders.
Duffy indicators the MoU with TxDOT
After his remarks, Secretary Duffy signed a ultimate Memorandum of Understanding with the Texas Division of Transportation (TxDOT) to assist the state construct infrastructure tasks sooner. The settlement permits Texas to take extra possession of environmental allowing necessities so they’re began and accomplished sooner. This Federal-State partnership will function a mannequin for different states all for implementing Secretary Duffy’s “America is Constructing Once more” agenda.
The settlement introduces a number of important modifications to streamline Texas’s environmental evaluation authority. Most notably, Texas will obtain prolonged authority to deal with NEPA tasks for 10 years as a substitute of the earlier five-year phrases, offering better long-term planning stability. The brand new settlement additionally removes numerous Biden-era necessities, together with environmental justice reporting mandates and public discover necessities relating to the best to sue beneath civil rights provisions.
Moreover, the streamlined settlement eliminates quite a few reporting requirement. Texas will now not be required to submit month-to-month studies, conduct annual self-assessments, or monitor in depth efficiency measures. The brand new framework accelerates decision-making processes by permitting TxDOT to make use of its present inner programs to doc NEPA approvals, which can function computerized notification to FHWA of Texas’s environmental selections.RFI-Floor-Transportation-Reauth
In a July 17, 2025 letter to all governors, Secretary Duffy urged states nationwide to imagine NEPA tasks and take the lead on mission supply. The letter emphasizes that states are “greatest positioned to coordinate freeway infrastructure planning and mission supply” and are “incentivized to cut back mission prices, shorten mission timelines, lead public engagement, and resolve administrative hurdles.”
The administration’s growth of NEPA task authority represents a major shift in environmental evaluation tasks. Presently, solely seven states have energetic NEPA task agreements: Texas, Alaska, Arizona, California, Florida, Ohio, and Utah, with Nebraska at present awaiting enrollment in response to the Federal Freeway Administration.
Beneath the NEPA Project Program, state departments of transportation function the lead federal company for environmental evaluations and approvals on assigned tasks. States assuming these tasks turn into topic to the identical procedural and substantive necessities that apply to the Division of Transportation, together with consent to federal courtroom jurisdiction and sole duty for compliance if mission NEPA litigation ensues.
As a part of the method to gather suggestions, the Division of Transportation additionally introduced a Request for Data titled Advancing a Floor Transportation Proposal that Focuses on America’s Most Elementary Infrastructure Wants
Sean McMaster, senior adviser to Secretary Duffy and nominee for FHWA Administrator, emphasised the collaborative strategy: “At present we’re publishing a request for info for concepts on floor transportation reauthorization… We wish to hear from the states. We wish to hear from the constructing business. We wish to hear from the commerce unions. We wish to hear from each citizen all for floor transportation reauthorization.”
