Study finds that millions available for infrastructure going untapped

YORKTOWN, NY (September 13, 2022) — Millions of dollars in state and federal funds for infrastructure are going unspent as the condition of Hudson Valley roads, bridges, sewers and other critically important infrastructure continues to worsen, according to an in-depth report issued today by the Construction Industry Council (CIC).

The Hudson Valley Infrastructure Gap study was commissioned by the CIC to analyze the lagging investments in highway, water and sewer infrastructure across the region. The report also examines public funding that is being “left on the table” and the reasons why many communities are not receiving entitlement funds or competitive infrastructure grants. The construction industry organization serves the 9 counties between New York City and Albany.

“The crumbling state of our infrastructure is of concern to everyone in the Hudson Valley who drives our roads, drinks our water and crosses our bridges,” said CIC Executive Director John Cooney Jr. “We know that there is funding available that would go a long way toward addressing the problems, but rather than guess, we decided to take a hard look at the data. Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress did a thorough independent analysis and provided us with a fact-based platform from which to move forward.”

“While our federal and state governments allocate millions of dollars for road, bridge and sewer work, all too often the local municipalities who are responsible for most of the projects fail to tap into the funds. The primary reason is that the application process for the funding is time

consuming and complicated,” Cooney explained. “Many municipalities, particularly the smaller ones, simply don’t have the time and staff needed to apply.”

He added: “That’s one aspect of a complex problem that can no longer be ignored. The CIC is committed to using the report’s findings as the basis for initiating a campaign to educate local governments on the extent of the problem and to offer solutions. We will begin by presenting our findings to our state legislators, followed by the county leaders for their input, and then move to the towns and villages.”

Driving on deficient roads alone costs New York State motorists a total of $28 billion a year in extra vehicle operating costs as a result of driving on roads in need of repair, related lost time, and traffic accidents, according to a January 2022 study by TRIP, the national transportation research nonprofit.

Among some of the CIC reports’ key findings are:

• Monies that are available are not being spent. For example, only 11 percent of the more than $3.9 billion appropriated statewide in 2017 for water infrastructure projects was spent as of March 2020.
• Many municipalities do not have the staffing and expertise to apply for grants and other federal funding programs, and thus don’t apply.
• 250 counties, towns, villages and cities in the Hudson Valley are responsible for repairing most of our local roadways, yet 73 percent of local roads in the Hudson Valley are ineligible for federal funds.
• State funds for road, bridge, sewer and water projects declined 11 percent between 2019 and 2020, aggravated by a halt in spending during the Covid-19 pandemic. Spending on infrastructure has been flat over the past decade.
• 411 or 17 percent of bridges in the Hudson Valley have been rated in “poor” condition by the Federal Highway Administration. It would take an estimated $671 million to improve municipal bridges and $1.8 billion to improve county bridges, yet only $28.4
• million has been allotted by Bridge-NY (the major source of funding) over the past two years.
• A municipal workforce labor shortage created by retirements, lack of training and overall changes in the workforce, are slowing construction projects.
• A lack of capital planning and infrastructure management is resulting in problems in budgeting and scheduling repairs.

Adam Bosch, President and CEO of Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress, said the report underscores the need for infrastructure planning, support, and a new model to help communities access government funds for infrastructure.

“Communities across the Hudson Valley need help to plan for the maintenance of their infrastructure and to access the government funds that will allow them to upgrade roads, bridges, and their waterworks,” Bosch said. “Our small towns and villages do not have the staff or time to navigate bureaucratic systems that make it too difficult for them receive infrastructure money. As a result, many of them are forgoing programs that are meant to help. Our communities are entitled to much of this money, and we ought to create systems that help them put our taxpayer dollars to work more effectively and efficiently.”

The report recommends many solutions that could help the Hudson Valley maintain its infrastructure and access funds to support capital projects. They include the following:

- Develop strategic planning to upgrade infrastructure according to its life cycle.

- Invest in asset management systems that will catalogue infrastructure assets, set maintenance schedules, track life cycles, and provide an objective basis for funding repairs and replacements.

- Join relevant trade associations such as the NYS Association of Town Superintendents of Highways, American Public Works Association, New York State American Waterworks Association, to help create helpful connections for advocacy and problem-solving.

- List projects in Statewide Transportation Improvement Plan (STIP). Projects cannot get federal aid unless they are listed as part of the four-year plan.

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Initiate projects quickly to avoid cost increases, labor shortages, higher interest rates, materials costs/supply chain issues.

- Consider outsourcing work to private contractors when it is safe, efficient and effective.

- Ensure succession planning to capture the institutional knowledge of longtime employees before they retire.

- Create an Infrastructure Academy through a public-private partnership to strengthen the workforce pipeline for those in trades related to infrastructure.

- Create a capital asset and infrastructure council.

- Make CHIPs funding more reliable by guaranteeing a minimum amount over a three-year or five-year period, rather than making it a bargaining chip in the annual state budget.

The complete report can be found by visiting https://cicbca.org/