$66.3 MILLION IN ADDITIONAL FEDERAL FUNDS RESCINDED FROM TDOT

More than $237 million in Federal Funds Rescinded Since December 2005

Nashville, Tenn. - The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) has received word from the United States Department of Transportation that another $66.3 million in federal funds have been rescinded from the TDOT’s federal allocation of funds for the fiscal year 2008.  The latest rescission brings the total of federal funds withdrawn since December 2005 to more than $237.7 million in Tennessee alone.  A rescission of funds means that federal dollars promised to the state have been cancelled and will not be received.  The rescission of funds affects all states, not just Tennessee.

“Nearly 50% of the department’s budget comes from the federal government, so a reduction in these revenues significantly impacts the resources available to TDOT,” said TDOT Commissioner Gerald Nicely. “This loss of funds, coupled with the massive inflation in the cost of construction materials, further reduces our ability to address the transportation needs of the state.”

In August 2005, President George W. Bush signed the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act, a Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU).  This Act authorized the Federal surface transportation programs for highways, highway safety, and transit for the five-year period from 2005 to 2009.  SAFETEA-LU put into place the levels of annual federal funds each state transportation department receives.  However, in the past several years authorized funding levels have been significantly reduced by rescissions. 

TDOT has experienced the following rescissions during the past two years:

December 2005          $41,401,347
March 2006                 $23,658,856
July 2006                     $14,538,140
March 2007                 $73,415,383
June 2007                   $18,419,963
March 2008                 $66,349,673      
Total Loss                   $237,783,362

“Federal funds support a variety of programs at TDOT, such as highway maintenance, bridge repair, road building, and environmental programs,” Nicely added.  “Continuing federal shortfalls will force us to make difficult decisions in all of these areas, especially those programs which receive a majority of funds from the federal government.”

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, the funds are being rescinded in accordance with Title XI, Subtitle D, Section 1132(a) of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, Pub. L. No. 110-140.

Programs impacted by the latest federal rescission include: Interstate Maintenance; Highway Bridge Program; National Highway System Program; Surface Transportation Program; Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program (CMAQ); Recreational Trails Program; Metropolitan Planning; Equity Bonus; and Transportation Enhancements.

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TDOT Communications Office
615-741-2331

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