23 U.S.C. § 144
Section 144 · Highway bridge replacement and rehabilitation program
Current version, with additions and removals from the July 22, 1998 version.
(a) Congress hereby finds and declares it to be in the vital interest of the Nation that a highway bridge replacement and rehabilitation program be established to enable the several States to replace or rehabilitate highway bridges over waterways, other topographical barriers, other highways, or railroads when the States and the Secretary finds that a bridge is significantly important and is unsafe because of structural deficiencies, physical deterioration, or functional obsolescence.
(b) The Secretary, in consultation with the States, shall (1) inventory all those highway bridges on any Federal-aid system which are bridges over waterways, other topographical barriers, other highways, and railroads; (2) classify them according to serviceability, safety, and essentiality for public use; (3) based on that classification, assign each a priority for replacement or rehabilitation; and (4) determine the cost of replacing each such bridge with a comparable facility or of rehabilitating such bridge.
(c)(1) The Secretary, in consultation with the States, shall (1) inventory all those highway bridges on public roads, other than those on any Federal-aid system, which are bridges over waterways, other topographical barriers, other highways, and railroads, (2) classify them according to serviceability, safety, and essentiality for public use, (3) based on the classification, assign each a priority for replacement or rehabilitation and (4) determine the cost of replacing each such bridge with a comparable facility or of rehabilitating such bridge.
(2) The Secretary may, at the request of a State, inventory bridges, on and off the Federal-aid system, for historic significance.
(3) Inventory of indian reservation and park bridges.—As part of the activities carried out under paragraph (1), the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, shall (A) inventory all those highway bridges on Indian reservation roads and park roads which are bridges over waterways, other topographical barriers, other highways, and railroads, (B) classify them according to serviceability, safety, and essentiality for public use, (C) based on the classification, assign each a priority for replacement or rehabilitation, and (D) determine the cost of replacing each such bridge with a comparable facility or of rehabilitating such bridge.
(d) Whenever any State or States make application to the Secretary for assistance in replacing or rehabilitating a highway bridge which the priority system established under subsection (b) and (c) of this section shows to be eligible, the Secretary may approve Federal participation in replacing such bridge with a comparable facility or in rehabilitating such bridge. Whenever any State makes application to the Secretary for assistance in painting and seismic retrofit, or applying calcium magnesium acetate, sodium acetate/formate, or other environmentally acceptable, minimally corrosive anti-icing and de-icing compositions or installing scour countermeasures to, the structure of a highway bridge, the Secretary may approve Federal participation in the painting or seismic retrofit of, or application of such acetate or sodium acetate/formate or such anti-icing or de-icing composition or installation of such countermeasures to, such structure. The Secretary shall determine the eligibility of highway bridges for replacement or rehabilitation for each State based upon the unsafe highway bridges in such State, except that a State may carry out a project for seismic retrofit of a bridge under this section without regard to whether the bridge is eligible for replacement or rehabilitation under this section. In approving projects (other than projects for bridge structure painting or seismic retrofit or application of such acetate or sodium acetate/formate or such anti-icing or de-icing composition or installation of such countermeasures) under this section, the Secretary shall give consideration to those projects which will remove from service those highway bridges most in danger of failure.
(e) Funds authorized to carry out this section shall be apportioned among the several States on October 1 of the fiscal year for which authorized in accordance with this subsection. Each deficient bridge shall be placed into one of the following categories: (1) Federal-aid system bridges eligible for replacement, (2) Federal-aid system bridges eligible for rehabilitation, (3) off-system bridges eligible for replacement, and (4) off-system bridges eligible for rehabilitation. The square footage of deficient bridges in each category shall be multiplied by the respective unit price on a State-by-State basis, as determined by the Secretary; and the total cost in each State divided by the total cost of the deficient bridges in all States shall determine the apportionment factors. For purposes of the preceding sentence, the total cost of deficient bridges in a State and in all States shall be reduced by the total cost of any highway bridges constructed under subsection (m) in such State, relating to replacement of destroyed bridges and ferryboat services, and, if a State transfers funds apportioned to the State under this section in a fiscal year beginning after September 30, 1997, to any other apportionment of funds to such State under this title, the total cost of deficient bridges in such State and in all States to be determined for the succeeding fiscal year shall be reduced by the amount of such transferred funds. No State shall receive more than 10 per centum or less than 0.25 per centum of the total apportionment for any one fiscal year. The Secretary shall make these determinations based upon the latest available data, which shall be updated annually. Funds apportioned under this section shall be available for expenditure for the same period as funds apportioned for projects on the Federal-aid primary system under this title. Any funds not obligated at the expiration of such period shall be reapportioned by the Secretary to the other States in accordance with this subsection. The use of funds authorized under this section to carry out a project for the seismic retrofit of a bridge shall not affect the apportionment of funds under this section.
(f) The Federal share payable on account of any project under this section shall be 80 per centum of the cost thereof.
(g) Set Asides.—
(1) Discretionary bridge program.—
(A) Fiscal years 1992 through 1997.—Of the amounts authorized for each of fiscal years 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, and 1997 by section 103 of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991, all but $57,000,000 in the case of fiscal year 1992, $68,000,000 in the case of fiscal years 1993 and 1994, and $69,000,000 in the case of fiscal years 1995, 1996, and 1997 shall be apportioned as provided in subsection (e) of this section. $49,000,000 in the case of fiscal year 1992, $59,500,000 in the case of fiscal years 1993 and 1994, and $60,500,000 in the case of fiscal years 1995, 1996, and 1997 of the amount authorized for each of such fiscal years shall be available for obligation on the date of each such apportionment in the same manner and to the same extent as the sums apportioned on such date, except that the obligation of $49,000,000 in the case of fiscal year 1992, $59,500,000 in the case of fiscal years 1993 and 1994, and $60,500,000 in the case of fiscal years 1995, 1996, and 1997 shall be at the discretion of the Secretary, and $8,500,000 per fiscal year ($8,000,000 in the case of fiscal year 1992) of the amount authorized for each of such fiscal years shall be available in accordance with section 1039 of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991, relating to highway timber bridges.
(B) Fiscal year 1998.—Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated to carry out the bridge program under this section for fiscal year 1998, all but $25,000,000 shall be apportioned as provided in subsection (e) of this section. Such $25,000,000 shall be available only for projects for the seismic retrofit of a bridge described in subsection (l).
(C) Fiscal years 1999 through 2003.—Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated to carry out the bridge program under this section for each of fiscal years 1999 through 2003, all but $100,000,000 shall be apportioned as provided in subsection (e). Such $100,000,000 shall be available at the discretion of the Secretary; except that not to exceed $25,000,000 shall be available only for projects for the seismic retrofit of bridges, including projects in the New Madrid fault region.
(2) Eligible discretionary projects.—Subject to section 149(d) of the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1987, amounts made available by paragraph (1) for obligation at the discretion of the Secretary may be obligated only—
(A) for a project for a highway bridge the replacement or rehabilitation cost of which is more than $10,000,000, and
(B) for a project for a highway bridge the replacement or rehabilitation cost of which is less than $10,000,000 if such cost is at least twice the amount apportioned to the State in which such bridge is located under subsection (e) for the fiscal year in which application is made for a grant for such bridge.
(3) Off-system bridges.—Not less than 15 percent nor more than 35 percent of the amount apportioned to each State in each of fiscal years 1987 through 2003 shall be expended for projects to replace, rehabilitate, paint or seismic retrofit, or apply calcium magnesium acetate, sodium acetate/formate, or other environmentally acceptable, minimally corrosive anti-icing and de-icing compositions or install scour countermeasures to highway bridges located on public roads, other than those on a Federal-aid highway. The Secretary, after consultation with State and local officials, may, with respect to such State, reduce the requirement for expenditure for bridges not on a Federal-aid highway when the Secretary determines that such State has inadequate needs to justify such expenditure.
(h) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the General Bridge Act of 1946 (33 U.S.C. 525–533) shall apply to bridges authorized to be replaced, in whole or in part, by this section, except that subsection (b) of section 502 of such Act of 1946 and section 9 of the Act of March 3, 1899 (30 Stat. 1151) shall not apply to any bridge constructed, reconstructed, rehabilitated, or replaced with assistance under this title, if such bridge is over waters (1) which are not used and are not susceptible to use in their natural condition or by reasonable improvement as a means to transport interstate or foreign commerce, and (2) which are (a) not tidal, or (b) if tidal, used only by recreational boating, fishing, and other small vessels less than 21 feet in length.
(i) Inventories and Reports.—The Secretary shall—
(1) report to the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives on projects approved under this section;
(2) annually revise the current inventories authorized by subsections (b) and (c) of this section;
(3) report to such committees on such inventories; and
(4) report to such committees such recommendations as the Secretary may have for improvements of the program authorized by this section.
Such reports shall be submitted to such committees biennially at the same time as the report required by section 307(f) 1 of this title is submitted to Congress.
(j) Sums apportioned to a State under this section shall be made available for obligation throughout such State on a fair and equitable basis.
(k) Not later than six months after the date of enactment of this subsection, and periodically thereafter, the Secretary shall review the procedure used in approving or disapproving applications submitted under this section to determine what changes, if any, may be made to expedite such procedure. Any such changes shall be implemented by the Secretary as soon as possible. Not later than nine months after the date of enactment of this subsection, the Secretary shall submit a report to Congress which describes such review and such changes, including any recommendations for legislative changes.
(l) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any bridge which is owned and operated by an agency (1) which does not have taxing powers, (2) whose functions include operating a federally assisted public transit system subsidized by toll revenues, shall be eligible for assistance under this section but the amount of such assistance shall in no event exceed the cumulative amount which such agency has expended for capital and operating costs to subsidize such transit system. Before authorizing an expenditure of funds under this subsection, the Secretary shall determine that the applicant agency has insufficient reserves, surpluses, and projected revenues (over and above those required for bridge and transit capital and operating costs) to fund the necessary bridge replacement or rehabilitation project. Any non-Federal funds expended for the seismic retrofit of the bridge may be credited toward the non-Federal share required as a condition of receipt of any Federal funds for seismic retrofit of the bridge made available after the date of the expenditure.
(m) Replacement of Destroyed Bridges and Ferryboat Service.—
(1) General rule.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this section or of any other provision of law, a State may utilize any of the funds provided under this section to construct any bridge which—
(A) replaces any low water crossing (regardless of the length of such low water crossing),
(B) replaces any bridge which was destroyed prior to 1965,
(C) replaces any ferry which was in existence on January 1, 1984, or
(D) replaces any road bridges rendered obsolete as a result of United States Corps of Engineers flood control or channelization projects and not rebuilt with funds from the United States Corps of Engineers.
(2) Federal share.—The Federal share payable on any bridge construction carried out under paragraph (1) shall be 80 percent of the cost of such construction.
(n) Off-System Bridge Program.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, with respect to any project not on a Federal-aid highway for the replacement of a bridge or rehabilitation of a bridge which is wholly funded from State and local sources, is eligible for Federal funds under this section, is noncontroversial, is certified by the State to have been carried out in accordance with all standards applicable to such projects under this section, and is determined by the Secretary upon completion to be no longer a deficient bridge, any amount expended after the date of the enactment of this subsection from State and local sources for such project in excess of 20 percent of the cost of construction thereof may be credited to the non-Federal share of the cost of the projects in such State which are eligible for Federal funds under this section. Such crediting shall be in accordance with such procedures as the Secretary may establish.
(o) Historic Bridge Program.—
(1) Coordination.—The Secretary shall, in cooperation with the States, implement the programs described in this section in a manner that encourages the inventory, retention, rehabilitation, adaptive reuse, and future study of historic bridges.
(2) State inventory.—The Secretary shall require each State to complete an inventory of all bridges on and off the Federal-aid system to determine their historic significance.
(3) Eligibility.—Reasonable costs associated with actions to preserve, or reduce the impact of a project under this chapter on, the historic integrity of historic bridges shall be eligible as reimbursable project costs under this title (including this section) if the load capacity and safety features of the bridge are adequate to serve the intended use for the life of the bridge; except that in the case of a bridge which is no longer used for motorized vehicular traffic, the costs eligible as reimbursable project costs pursuant to this subsection shall not exceed the estimated cost of demolition of such bridge.
(4) Preservation.—Any State which proposes to demolish a historic bridge for a replacement project with funds made available to carry out this section shall first make the bridge available for donation to a State, locality, or responsible private entity if such State, locality, or responsible entity enters into an agreement to—
(A) maintain the bridge and the features that give it its historic significance; and
(B) assume all future legal and financial responsibility for the bridge, which may include an agreement to hold the State highway agency harmless in any liability action.
Costs incurred by the State to preserve the historic bridge, including funds made available to the State, locality, or private entity to enable it to accept the bridge, shall be eligible as reimbursable project costs under this chapter up to an amount not to exceed the cost of demolition. Any bridge preserved pursuant to this paragraph shall thereafter not be eligible for any other funds authorized pursuant to this title.
(5) Historic bridge defined.—As used in this subsection, “historic bridge” means any bridge that is listed on, or eligible for listing on, the National Register of Historic Places.
(p) Applicability of State Standards for Projects.—A project not on a Federal-aid highway under this section shall be designed, constructed, operated, and maintained in accordance with State laws, regulations, directives, safety standards, design standards, and construction standards.
(q) As used in this section the term “rehabilitate” in any of its forms means major work necessary to restore the structural integrity of a bridge as well as work necessary to correct a major safety defect.
Congress finds that—
the condition of the bridges of the United States has improved since the date of enactment of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (Public Law 105–178; 112 Stat. 107), yet continued improvement to bridge conditions is essential to protect the safety of the traveling public and allow for the efficient movement of people and goods on which the economy of the United States relies; and
the systematic preventative maintenance of bridges, and replacement and rehabilitation of deficient bridges, should be undertaken through an overall asset management approach to transportation investment.
Congress declares that it is in the vital interest of the United States—
to inventory, inspect, and improve the condition of the highway bridges and tunnels of the United States;
to use a data-driven, risk-based approach and cost-effective strategy for systematic preventative maintenance, replacement, and rehabilitation of highway bridges and tunnels to ensure safety, resilience, and extended service life;
to use performance-based bridge management systems to assist States in making timely investments;
to ensure accountability and link performance outcomes to investment decisions;
to ensure connectivity and access for residents of rural areas of the United States through strategic investments in National Highway System bridges and bridges on all public roads; and
to ensure adequate passage of aquatic and terrestrial species, where appropriate.
The Secretary, in consultation with the States and Federal agencies with jurisdiction over highway bridges and tunnels, shall—
inventory all highway bridges on public roads, on and off Federal-aid highways, including tribally owned and Federally owned bridges, that are bridges over waterways, other topographical barriers, other highways, and railroads;
inventory all tunnels on public roads, on and off Federal-aid highways, including tribally owned and Federally owned tunnels;
classify the bridges according to serviceability, safety, and essentiality for public use, including the potential impacts to emergency evacuation routes and to regional and national freight and passenger mobility if the serviceability of the bridge is restricted or diminished;
based on that classification, assign each a risk-based priority for systematic preventative maintenance, replacement, or rehabilitation;
determine the cost of replacing each bridge classified as in poor condition identified under this subsection with a comparable facility or the cost of rehabilitating the bridge; and
determine if the replacement or rehabilitation of bridges and tunnels should include measures to enable safe and unimpeded movement for terrestrial and aquatic species.
Except as provided in paragraph (2) and notwithstanding any other provision of law, the General Bridge Act of 1946 (33 U.S.C. 525 et seq.) shall apply to bridges authorized to be replaced, in whole or in part, by this title.
Section 502(b) of the General Bridge Act of 1946 (33 U.S.C. 525(b)) and section 9 of the Act of March 3, 1899 (33 U.S.C. 401), shall not apply to any bridge constructed, reconstructed, rehabilitated, or replaced with assistance under this title, if the bridge is over waters that—
are not used and are not susceptible to use in the natural condition of the water or by reasonable improvement as a means to transport interstate or foreign commerce; and
are—
not tidal; or
if tidal, used only by recreational boating, fishing, and other small vessels that are less than 21 feet in length.
The Secretary shall—
annually revise the inventories authorized by subsection (b); and
submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate a report on the inventories.
Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of the MAP–21, each State and appropriate Federal agency shall report element level data to the Secretary, as each bridge is inspected pursuant to this section, for all highway bridges on the National Highway System.
The Secretary shall provide guidance to States and Federal agencies for implementation of this subsection, while respecting the existing inspection schedule of each State.
The Secretary shall—
conduct a study on the benefits, cost-effectiveness, and feasibility of requiring element-level data collection for bridges not on the National Highway System; and
submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate a report on the results of the study.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any bridge that is owned and operated by an agency that does not have taxing powers and whose functions include operating a federally assisted public transit system subsidized by toll revenues shall be eligible for assistance under this title, but the amount of such assistance shall in no event exceed the cumulative amount which such agency has expended for capital and operating costs to subsidize such transit system.
Before authorizing an expenditure of funds under this subsection, the Secretary shall determine that the applicant agency has insufficient reserves, surpluses, and projected revenues (over and above those required for bridge and transit capital and operating costs) to fund the bridge project or activity eligible for assistance under this title.
Any non-Federal funds expended for the seismic retrofit of the bridge may be credited toward the non-Federal share required as a condition of receipt of any Federal funds for seismic retrofit of the bridge made available after the date of the expenditure.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a State may use the funds apportioned under section 104(b)(2) to construct any bridge that replaces—
any low water crossing (regardless of the length of the low water crossing);
any bridge that was destroyed prior to January 1, 1965;
any ferry that was in existence on January 1, 1984; or
any road bridge that is rendered obsolete as a result of a Corps of Engineers flood control or channelization project and is not rebuilt with funds from the Corps of Engineers.
The Federal share payable on any bridge construction carried out under paragraph (1) shall be 80 percent of the cost of the construction.
In this subsection, the term “historic bridge” means any bridge that is listed on, or eligible for listing on, the National Register of Historic Places.
The Secretary shall, in cooperation with the States, encourage the retention, rehabilitation, adaptive reuse, and future study of historic bridges.
The Secretary shall require each State to complete an inventory of all bridges on and off Federal-aid highways to determine the historic significance of the bridges.
Subject to subparagraph (B), reasonable costs associated with actions to preserve, or reduce the impact of a project under this chapter on, the historic integrity of a historic bridge shall be eligible as reimbursable project costs under section 133 if the load capacity and safety features of the historic bridge are adequate to serve the intended use for the life of the historic bridge.
In the case of a historic bridge that is no longer used for motorized vehicular traffic, the costs eligible as reimbursable project costs pursuant to this chapter shall not exceed the estimated cost of demolition of the historic bridge.
Any State that proposes to demolish a historic bridge for a replacement project with funds made available to carry out this section shall first make the historic bridge available for donation to a State, locality, or responsible private entity if the State, locality, or responsible entity enters into an agreement—
to maintain the bridge and the features that give the historic bridge its historic significance; and
to assume all future legal and financial responsibility for the historic bridge, which may include an agreement to hold the State transportation department harmless in any liability action.
Costs incurred by the State to preserve a historic bridge (including funds made available to the State, locality, or private entity to enable it to accept the bridge) shall be eligible as reimbursable project costs under this chapter in an amount not to exceed the cost of demolition.
Any bridge preserved pursuant to this paragraph shall not be eligible for any other funds authorized pursuant to this title.
The Secretary shall establish and maintain inspection standards for the proper inspection and evaluation of all highway bridges and tunnels for safety and serviceability.
The standards under this subsection shall be designed to ensure uniformity of the inspections and evaluations.
The standards established under paragraph (1) shall, at a minimum—
specify, in detail, the method by which the inspections shall be carried out by the States, Federal agencies, and tribal governments;
establish the maximum time period between inspections;
establish the qualifications for those charged with carrying out the inspections;
require each State, Federal agency, and tribal government to maintain and make available to the Secretary on request—
written reports on the results of highway bridge and tunnel inspections and notations of any action taken pursuant to the findings of the inspections; and
current inventory data for all highway bridges and tunnels reflecting the findings of the most recent highway bridge and tunnel inspections conducted; and
establish a procedure for national certification of highway bridge inspectors and tunnel inspectors.
The Secretary shall, at a minimum—
establish, in consultation with the States, Federal agencies, and interested and knowledgeable private organizations and individuals, procedures to conduct reviews of State compliance with—
the standards established under this subsection; and
the calculation or reevaluation of bridge load ratings; and
establish, in consultation with the States, Federal agencies, and interested and knowledgeable private organizations and individuals, procedures for States to follow in reporting to the Secretary—
critical findings relating to structural or safety-related deficiencies of highway bridges and tunnels; and
monitoring activities and corrective actions taken in response to a critical finding described in clause (i).
The Secretary shall annually review State compliance with the standards established under this section.
If an annual review in accordance with subparagraph (A) identifies noncompliance by a State, the Secretary shall—
issue a report detailing the issues of the noncompliance by December 31 of the calendar year in which the review was made; and
provide the State an opportunity to address the noncompliance by—
developing a corrective action plan to remedy the noncompliance; or
resolving the issues of noncompliance not later than 45 days after the date of notification.
If a State fails to satisfy the requirements of paragraph (4)(B) by August 1 of the calendar year following the year of a finding of noncompliance, the Secretary shall, on October 1 of that year, and each year thereafter as may be necessary, require the State to dedicate funds apportioned to the State under sections 119 and 133 after the date of enactment of the MAP–21 to correct the noncompliance with the minimum inspection standards established under this subsection.
The amount of the funds to be directed to correcting noncompliance in accordance with subparagraph (A) shall—
be determined by the State based on an analysis of the actions needed to address the noncompliance; and
require approval by the Secretary.
Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of the MAP–21, the Secretary shall update inspection standards to cover—
the methodology, training, and qualifications for inspectors; and
the frequency of inspection.
In carrying out the revisions required by paragraph (6), the Secretary shall consider a risk-based approach to determining the frequency of bridge inspections.
The Secretary, in cooperation with the State transportation departments, shall maintain a program designed to train appropriate personnel to carry out highway bridge and tunnel inspections.
The training program shall be revised from time to time to take into account new and improved techniques.(3) Requirement.—The first revision under paragraph (2) after the date of enactment of the Surface Transportation Reauthorization Act of 2021 shall include techniques to assess passage of aquatic and terrestrial species and habitat restoration potential.
The purpose of this subsection is to save costs and time by encouraging States to bundle multiple bridge projects as 1 project.
In this subsection, the term “eligible entity” means an entity eligible to carry out a bridge project under section 119 or 133.
An eligible entity may bundle 2 or more similar bridge projects that are—
eligible projects under section 119 or 133;
included as a bundled project in a transportation improvement program under section 134(j) or a statewide transportation improvement program under section 135, as applicable; and
awarded to a single contractor or consultant pursuant to a contract for engineering and design or construction between the contractor and an eligible entity.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law (including regulations), a bundling of bridge projects under this subsection may be listed as—
1 project for purposes of sections 134 and 135; and
a single project.
Projects bundled under this subsection shall have the same financial characteristics, including—
the same funding category or subcategory; and
the same Federal share.
In carrying out this section—
the Secretary may use funds made available to the Secretary under sections 104(a) and 503;
a State may use amounts apportioned to the State under section 104(b)(1) and 104(b)(2);
an Indian tribe may use funds made available to the Indian tribe under section 202; and
a Federal agency may use funds made available to the agency under section 503.