The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has approved the BUILD America 250 Act, a five-year, roughly $580-billion reauthorization proposal emphasizing formula funding and long-term planning certainty, while the Senate has yet to release its own legislation.

ENR previously reported the House proposal would continue emphasizing formula funding while leaving a portion of authorized spending subject to future appropriations, leaving states awaiting final congressional action.

ASTB Chairman Ted Maxwell acknowledged the uncertainty surrounding funding beyond the current federal authorization.

"One thing I do want to say about the plan ... you see a dip in 2029 ... everybody panics, but one of the things to remember is we don't have any authorization for any federal funds in there," Maxwell said before the board's unanimous vote. "So those funds are not included in those out years. As we see what happens with that, those should come back to a more consistent level."

The plan includes about $6.95 billion for statewide transportation investments administered by ADOT, $3.56 billion for the Maricopa County Regional Transportation Plan Freeway Program, nearly $620 million for the Pima County Regional Transportation Authority Highway Program and about $186 million for improvements at 67 public airports.

Iqbal Hossain, deputy division director of ADOT's Multimodal Planning Division, told board members state and federal law require the plan to remain fiscally constrained, with projects evaluated annually for inflation, project readiness and changing pavement and bridge conditions.

He said ADOT also uses "a risk-based approach," prioritizing projects where delaying work could create "safety concerns, mobility issues or higher future costs."

The adopted plan directs 78% of available funding toward preserving existing infrastructure, 15% toward modernization projects and 7% toward capacity expansion.

ADOT estimates a $162.3-billion gap between projected transportation needs and anticipated revenues over the next 25 years as fuel efficiency and electric vehicle adoption erode fuel tax collections while Arizona's gas tax has remained unchanged since 1992.

Among the largest expansion projects are widening Interstate 17 south of Flagstaff, reconstructing a five-mile segment of SR 260 near Lion Springs into a four-lane divided highway and continuing the four-lane widening of US 93 at Big Jim Wash in Yavapai County.

Much of the remaining investment targets pavement rehabilitation along Interstate 10 and Interstate 40, bridge rehabilitation and replacement, freight-related port-of-entry improvements and intelligent transportation system upgrades.

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David M. Martin, president of the Arizona Chapter of the Associated General Contractors, said in an email to ENR that predictable long-term transportation funding allows contractors "to hire, invest in equipment, and build the skilled workforce Arizona needs to keep pace with its growth."

He added that additional long-term funding solutions remain necessary, warning proposals to suspend or eliminate state or federal gas taxes "would significantly undermine the primary source of transportation funding and create uncertainty for the projects and jobs Arizona depends on."

ADOT said the five-year plan will continue to evolve as project schedules, costs and available funding change. The department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.