ASCE Releases 2025 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure; 2025 Grade Improves to a C
The grades are in! On March 25th, ASCE released the new 2025 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure. Released every four years, the highly anticipated report is a comprehensive evaluation of the nation’s infrastructure network.
The 2025 Report Card applies an overall ‘C’ grade, finding that legislation passed by Congress since the 2021 Report Card sparked progress, but more work and investment is needed to overcome decades of aging infrastructure and adapt the country’s transportation networks, water systems, electric grid and broadband services to meet current and future demands.
An improvement from the C- grade in 2021, 2025’s C is the highest grade given by ASCE since it began its Report Card in 1998. While the Report Card shows that recent investments from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act have started to pay off, ASCE projects a $3.7 trillion gap between current planned infrastructure investments and what must be done to have the nation’s infrastructure in good working order — an increase from the $2.59 trillion gap reported four years ago.
The overall message: Better infrastructure is an efficient investment of taxpayer dollars that results in a stronger economy and prioritizes American jobs, resilience and connectivity.
For more information including category-specific details, please visit infrastructurereportcard.org.
House holds hearing on permitting regulations under Clean Water Act
On February 11th, the House Transportation & Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment held a hearing on permitting regulations under the Clean Water Act (CWA). Discussions focused largely on permitting related to water quality and state water quality certification requirements for project permits. Subcommittee Chairman Mike Collins (R-GA) noted the importance of the CWA, while also stating his view that the law has been used to “slow or stop progress on important projects.” Collins also noted the Trump Administration’s focus on the importance of “unleashing our nation’s natural resources, ramping up energy production, and maintaining our physical infrastructure,” and his view that it was time for the CWA to “put America first.”
Appearing before the committee were various stakeholders representing states as well as the interests of business and industry. Robert Singletary with the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality, Noah Hanners of the Nucor Corporation and representing the National Association of Manufacturers, and Buddy Hasten with the Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corporation testified against states' efforts to broaden the scope of CWA permitting regulations to address issues they viewed as not related to water and water quality and the need to ensure that permitting processes do not onerously affect project delivery. New Jersey Commissioner of Environmental Protection Shawn LaTourette also spoke of the need to balance economic needs with the protection and conservation of natural resources and consistent application of the law, and that economic development and environmental quality were not mutually exclusive.
ASCE provided the subcommittee with a statement for the record outlining its view of the need for CWA reauthorization that addresses factors such as non-point source pollution and ensuring that permitting processes are as efficient as possible.
Lutnick confirmed as Commerce Secretary
On February 18, the Senate confirmed Howard Lutnick, former finance executive and head of President Donald Trump’s transition team, as the next Secretary of Commerce. Lutnick was confirmed by a vote of 51-45. As Secretary, Lutnick will oversee several key agencies which fall under the umbrella of the Department of Commerce. These include the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Weather Service, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
Lutnick will also be tasked with continuing implementation of the CHIPS and Science Act, a signature piece of legislation under the Biden Administration supported by ASCE that introduced billions of dollars in investments for the nation’s Research & Development sector.
Senate EPW Committee examines environmental review and permitting at hearing
The Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works held a hearing on improving the federal environmental review and permitting process on February 19th. Committee Chair Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) said this Congress presents an opportunity to deliver bipartisan legislation with meaningful reforms. Representing renewable energy and clean energy infrastructure, home builders, laborers, and the construction industry, witnesses discussed their experiences and challenges with the federal permitting process. Several witnesses recommended reforms to the judicial review period, noting litigation can obstruct projects for years. They also discussed the negative repercussions of project delays, such as unpredictability for workers and steep prices for consumers.
Prior to the hearing, ASCE submitted a statement for the record to the committee expressing support for safe and efficient project delivery and outlining various recommendations for the upcoming Surface Transportation Reauthorization bill. ASCE supports a balanced approach to the National Environmental Policy Act process characterized by quality science, objective determinations of potential project impacts on the environment, and streamlining the permitting and approval process for infrastructure projects.
House narrowly passes budget resolution, setting the stage for tax and spending battle
On February 25th, U.S. House Republicans passed a budget resolution calling for $4.5 trillion in tax cuts and another $2 trillion in federal spending reductions over the next decade. The resolution passed 217-215 along mostly party lines. It lays the foundation for the Republican-controlled Congress to craft a massive, multi-trillion-dollar budget reconciliation package, aiming to extend President Trump’s signature 2017 tax breaks and make significant reductions to federal discretionary spending. With the passage of the resolution, lawmakers on Capitol Hill will now spend the next few weeks holding committee hearings to draft legislation which they hope will help deliver President Trump’s domestic policy agenda.
The House’s passage of its package comes just days after the U.S. Senate passed its own narrower budget resolution calling for an additional $175 billion in border security and $150 billion in defense spending. The Senate will ultimately need to pass the House’s version of the budget resolution before continuing its efforts on a budget reconciliation.
Trump Administration moves to repeal NEPA implementation regulations
On February 25th, the Trump administration issued an interim final rule to repeal all Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations used to implement the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). NEPA requires federal government agencies to study and determine the environmental impacts of significant federal actions, such as energy and infrastructure projects. CEQ is the agency primarily responsible for issuing regulations guiding federal agency actions and reviews under NEPA.
Under President Donald Trump’s executive order entitled “Unleashing American Energy”, the White House required CEQ to propose rescinding NEPA regulations to streamline the permitting process for energy projects. The interim final rule includes a public comment period which closed on March 27, 2025.
ASCE supports “forward thinking environmental regulations that protect the environment from damage for current and future generations,” and a balanced approach to NEPA “characterized by quality science, objective determinations of potential project impacts on the environment, and streamlining the permitting and approval process for infrastructure projects.”
House Energy and Commerce subcommittee focuses on Biden era spending on energy and environment programs
On February 26th, the House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight & Investigations held a hearing to explore federal spending under the Biden administration dedicated to energy and environmental programs. This included programs funded under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Inflation Reduction Act.
Republicans on the subcommittee focused much of the discussion on potential and perceived waste, fraud and abuse from programs funded by the Biden administration which supported activities such as loans for clean energy development, and greenhouse gas emissions reduction. Democrats defended the importance of the programs supported by the Biden administration to address climate change and upgrade infrastructure systems. They noted their concern of holding a hearing on this issue as Congress and the Trump administration plan to make steep funding cuts to federal agencies and programs.
Supreme Court limits EPA authority to regulate water pollution
On March 4th, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to limit the ability of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate water pollution from sewage plants and industrial facilities under the Clean Water Act. In the case of San Francisco v. EPA, the court determined that EPA could not hold the city responsible for pollutant discharges into the Pacific Ocean from sewage treatment plants.
The ruling clarifies that EPA permits for sewage treatment plants and other point sources cannot hold these entities responsible for water quality, rather the permits only state what such entities can and cannot do, including through language limiting specific pollutants from being discharged into waterways. The concern among environmental advocates is that the ruling will increase the workload for EPA’s permitting activity and place greater demands on staff.
Trump administration lays off hundreds of NOAA employees
It was reported that in late February more than 800 employees from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) had been laid off as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to cut federal spending and the federal workforce. Layoffs were largely focused on employees working at the agency on probationary status, a period which is typical for employees assuming new roles within agencies. Generally, probationary employees do not have the same protections enjoyed by longer tenured employees. The following day, about 500 additional employees resigned from the agency, accepting the purported offer of receiving their full salary through September in exchange for resignations.
The roughly 1,300 employees represent about 10 percent of NOAA’s total workforce. A report produced by the Heritage Foundation, largely viewed as a blueprint for the second Trump administration, recommends the elimination of NOAA and eliminating or reassigning several of its functions, including weather forecasting and climate data collection. ASCE will continue to closely monitor the impacts from federal government layoff across all agencies that are critical to ensuring infrastructure investments are maintained.
House Water Resources Subcommittee holds hearing on Clean Water State Revolving Fund and WIFIA
On March 11th, the House Transportation & Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment held a hearing to discuss the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA). The CWSRF and WIFIA programs provide funding to states to support revolving loans for water infrastructure improvements. CWSRF loans support wastewater and stormwater projects, while WIFIA loans support projects that cost at least $20 million. Both CWSRF and WIFIA were reauthorized under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and are set to expire at the end of Fiscal Year 2026.
The hearing centered on the importance of the two financing programs, as well as ongoing challenges. Witnesses appearing before the committee represented a wide range of stakeholders, including business and finance, construction, and tribal communities. Their testimonies praised the program as being vital to supporting water infrastructure improvements in communities across the country and the importance of state control over their own revolving funds and project loan selection. They also discussed ongoing challenges to the programs such as funding and investment shortfalls and the cost of compliance with regulatory requirements.
ASCE submitted a statement to the subcommittee which was entered into the record at the beginning of the hearing highlighting the importance of reauthorization, and the need to reauthorize at levels equal to or higher than the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in order to reduce the water infrastructure investment gap highlighted in ASCE’s 2024 economic study titled Bridging the Gap: The Power of Investment in Water.
Congress avoids government shutdown and funds government for 2025
On Friday March 14th, Congress narrowly avoided a government shutdown as it approved a continuing resolution to fund the government for the remainder of the 2025 fiscal year a few hours short of the midnight deadline. The passage of this funding bill, and its signature by President Trump, ends weeks of negotiations by congressional leadership and senior members of the appropriations committees six months into the government’s fiscal year.
The bill passed by both chambers keeps most government programs funded at the same levels they saw in FY24, with few exceptions. Notably, $15.9 billion community funding projects in member districts - commonly referred to as “earmarks” – that were approved when they passed out of committee were eliminated from the final spending package. The bill also extends a recission from the previous fiscal year of $20 billion for the Internal Revenue Service.
Funding for programs authorized under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was maintained at the same levels appropriated in FY 2024, providing $20.9 billion for public transit and $16.2 billion for passenger rail in FY 2025. A notable exception to this, the bill reprograms $115 million in unobligated IIJA funds from the National Dam Safety Program into the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Federal Assistance account for FY 2025. The bill also provides $3.8 billion for Capital Investment Grants, equal to the FY 2024 funding level.