Highway Formula Program
The Need for Dedicated Funding
Delivering the Future Interstate vision for the Ports-to-Plains corridors — including full I-27 designation — requires an investment scale that existing state and federal highway formula programs were never designed to absorb. Converting a largely undeveloped, multi-state corridor into a true Interstate system demands substantial funding for right-of-way acquisition, engineering, environmental clearance, and construction — costs that exceed normal state program capacities.
Reliance on traditional formulas forces Future Interstate projects to compete against urban preservation needs and short-term priorities, producing inequitable outcomes for rural corridors of national significance. A dedicated corridor funding formula is the only fair and scalable solution. By tying funding to undeveloped corridor mileage, all nine Ports-to-Plains states can participate equitably, receive predictable multi-year funding, and coordinate delivery across state lines — transforming designation into construction.
Why This Matters Historically
Since Congress authorized a 40,000-mile Interstate System in 1944, system growth has been modest:
1990s: ~42,700 miles
2000s: 46,747 miles
2020s: Just over 48,000 miles
During the same period, the U.S. population more than doubled, trade increased by 14,700%, and the economy expanded 60-fold — yet the Interstate System has not kept pace, particularly along multi-state north–south trade corridors critical to today’s national economy.
The Formula Solution
The proposed Future Interstate funding formula is designed to allocate dedicated corridor funding based on objective, verifiable characteristics of the corridor itself rather than traditional state apportionment formulas. This approach recognizes that Future Interstate corridors serve national and multi-state interests and require funding mechanisms aligned with their scale, complexity, and economic importance.
By focusing on corridor-specific metrics, the formula ensures equitable participation by all states, predictable multi-year investment, and coordinated delivery across state lines. This structure allows undeveloped Interstate segments to advance consistently from planning through construction while reducing competition with unrelated state transportation priorities.
Why a Dedicated Program?
There is currently no dedicated federal funding program to plan or construct Future Interstate Highways. The original Interstate System began in the 1950s with a guaranteed 90 percent federal funding commitment, enabling rapid, coordinated national delivery. That system was largely completed by 1985 and formally concluded in 1992. Beginning in 1991, Congress acknowledged the need for continued Interstate expansion through the High Priority Corridors concept. However, for more than three decades, no dedicated federal funding mechanism has followed. As a result, not a single congressionally authorized, multi-state Future Interstate corridor has been fully completed. A renewed federal commitment — through dedicated policy, funding, and programmatic leadership — is essential to modernize and expand the Interstate System to meet today’s national freight, trade, and connectivity needs.
Advocate for Formula Inclusion
Now is the time to act to secure Future Interstate funding. Urge your Members of Congress to include the Multi-State Future Interstate Highway Formula Program in the next Federal Transportation Reauthorization bill (expected in 2026). Ask for explicit legislative language authorizing the formula to ensure dedicated corridor funding moves from designation to construction.
Reliable, long-term highway formula funding is essential to delivering the transportation infrastructure our communities, industries, and rural regions depend on. Formula funding provides predictability, supports multi-year planning, and allows projects to move efficiently from designation to construction—particularly for rural and multi-state corridors that cannot rely on discretionary grants alone.
To demonstrate unified support during the upcoming federal surface transportation reauthorization process, we respectfully request that your organization formally execute a Resolution Supporting Highway Formula Funding. Upon adoption, please email the signed resolution to Joe Kiely, Vice President of Operations, Ports-to-Plains Alliance, at joe.kiely@portstoplains.com.
These resolutions will be shared collectively with Members of Congress, committee staff, and federal transportation partners to reinforce the importance of robust and dependable formula funding for safety, freight mobility, agriculture, energy development, and rural connectivity. Thank you for your leadership and continued partnership in advancing infrastructure solutions that deliver results.