July 2025 Volume 23 Issue 7

We are a voice for our small town, grassroots members who may otherwise not have access to the right audiences, as well as a conduit for industry to come together in support and promotion of transportation improvements.

We are committed to working as an Alliance to improve transportation infrastructure and business networks opportunities, by advocating for appropriate funding levels, so business and industry can thrive.

We are focused on the economic and business interests that are the lifeblood of the region.

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PRESIDENT'S CORNER

Last month I introduced you to the “Something Big” that we will be working on over the course of the next fourteen months. That being a Future Interstate Highway Bill to be considered in the 2026 Surface Transportation Reauthorization. This bill, if passed, would positively impact the completion of future interstate corridors in twenty-three states today including our portion of the Ports-to-Plains that runs through Texas and New Mexico. But getting a future interstate highway bill funded is only part of our mission. For the rest of our P2P corridor that runs through Oklahoma and Colorado along with the Heartland Expressway and Theodore Roosevelt Expressway that completes our Mexico to Canada connection, we need more. The solution is an interstate feasibility study that will look at the rest of our corridor from a broader perspective other than a four-lane divided highway.

Let me share an example to better explain what I mean by a broader perspective. I have had the pleasure of managing and working with employees for over thirty-one years. This has included the hiring and selecting of many people over that time span. I would love to tell you that they were all great hires, but there were a few that didn’t work out. You might say that Lauren has trouble evaluating talent, but maybe it has more to do with how we go about establishing selection criteria. We ask applicants to give us resumes that describe job experience and how that experience is relatable to the requirements of the job. We may even ask for references, but how many times have you received a bad reference? Requirements of the job are a key point here. If we are not clear about our job descriptions and worse yet, if we do not capture all the job requirements, we may miss out on that best fit candidate. Also, it is always hard to evaluate potential, but potential could be the most valuable criteria that we often overlook.

It is this potential criterion that gives us problems on our feasibility studies, especially on rural corridors like the ones we have. How many times have you heard the statement that upgrading your corridor is not feasible because it does not carry enough traffic, accidents rates are not high enough, the existing road is functioning as it was intended. Too many times, these studies are diluted because the DOT is not always evaluating these corridors exclusively. What I mean is they are always pressured to compare the feasibility of these corridors with others in their system. The reason being that they must prioritize improvements with limited funds.

Here is where the value of an interstate feasibility study comes into play. Now the criteria will include potential. Potential looks at things like economic development, population growth, market demands, freight movement, trade impacts both nationally and internationally. Potential looks at addressing underserved areas in rural America, and the value of upgrading alternative routes to increase the resiliency of our transportation network. Potential looks at the value of upgrading a corridor with new technologies and the economic demand that will be driven to support these new technologies. Potential takes a look at all this, while at the same time addressing some of the traditional criteria like accident reduction, improved travel times, and future traffic volumes. This is why we need a future interstate feasibility study on the rest of our corridor.

There were times when my final hiring decision came down to potential after evaluating all the job criteria. Most of those were my best hires. Think about what farmer Homer Zuckerman thought he had in his hog pen. It was just an ordinary pig destined for the dinner table until Charlotte the spider starting writing words in her web describing Wilber’s potential like “some pig”, “radiant”, “terrific”, and “humble.” You know the rest of the story.

more to come …

Lauren D. Garduño

2025 Ports-to-Plains Alliance Conference Keynote Speaker

Captain Chris Cassidy

NASA Astronaut, U.S. Navy SEAL, CEO and

President of the National Medal of Honor Museum

A decorated veteran of the sea, air, land, and outer space, Captain Chris Cassidy is among the leaders of an exclusive and distinguished group of accomplished military astronauts who have made an impact on and beyond this world. Recognized for his leadership and achievements as a United States Navy SEAL and a NASA astronaut, CAPT Cassidy’s various military deployments and spaceflight missions provided the catalysts for an action-packed career where he made the most of every opportunity presented to him, even in challenging and high-stakes environments.

Exclusively represented by Leading Authorities speakers bureau, CAPT Cassidy’s talks explore the habits of effective leaders and how they can motivate their teams to overcome the obstacles in front of them, foster a high-performing culture of trust, and thrive in clutch moments when everything is on the line. With a talent for storytelling and well-timed humor, he shares his inspiring journey from the U.S. Naval Academy to becoming NASA’s 15^th Chief Astronaut — motivating audiences to develop a never-quit mindset to accomplish their goals, and help others along the way.

CAPT Cassidy’s career began as a member of the U.S. Navy SEALs team where he spent 11 of his 28 years in the Navy — making two six-month deployments to Afghanistan and a further two deployments to the Mediterranean. During his tenure with the Navy SEALS, he served in various leadership roles, including Executive Officer and Operations Officer of Special Boat Team Twenty and SEAL Delivery Vehicle (SDV) platoon commander in Norfolk, Virginia, as well as SEAL platoon commander at SEAL Team THREE in Coronado, California. Deployed to Afghanistan just two weeks after the September 11 attacks, Cassidy also served as Ground Assault Force Commander for international and U.S.-only combat missions. A master of many trades while serving his country, CAPT Cassidy also amassed several hundred hours underwater as a navigator or mission commander of a two-man flooded submersible SDV which are launched from a full-sized submarine at sea.

Making his way from Earth to the cosmos, CAPT Cassidy was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in 2004. Assigned his first spaceflight in 2009 as a mission specialist aboard the STS-127, he became the 500^th person in history to fly into space, as well as the second-ever SEAL. In subsequent flight experiences, CAPT Cassidy was assigned to Expedition 35 in 2013 as a flight engineer and Expedition 63 as Commander of the International Space Station in 2020. While at NASA, CAPT Cassidy accumulated 378 days in space, and 54 hours, 51 minutes of spacewalk time, placing him in an elite group of four U.S. crewmembers with 10 spacewalks. He was named NASA’s Chief Astronaut in 2015, a role in which he was responsible for flight assignments, mission preparation, and on-orbit support of U.S. crews, as well as organizing astronaut office support for future launch vehicles. He served in this position for two years before returning to normal flight status.

In May 2021, three-time space veteran CAPT Cassidy announced his retirement from both NASA and the Navy, transitioning into his current role as CEO and president of the National Medal of Honor Museum. He leads the development of a world-class nonprofit institution dedicated to honoring Medal of Honor recipients and inspiring future generations through their stories. Under his leadership, the Museum has gained significant momentum, establishing itself as a vital platform for education, patriotism, and public service.

Among CAPT Cassidy’s awards and honors are the Bronze Star with combat “V,” the Presidential Unit Citation for leading a nine-day operation at the Zharwar Kili cave complex on the Afghanistan/Pakistan border, a second Bronze Star for combat leadership during Operation Enduring Freedom, the Great American Patriot Award, and the NASA Exceptional Achievement Medal. He completed the 2014 Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii and spent three weeks cycling through the Amazon rainforest in 2017. CAPT Cassidy earned his Bachelor of Science in mathematics from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1993 and his Master of Science in ocean engineering from MIT in 2000. He also serves on the board of directors for the JFK Library Foundation and the Navy SEAL Foundation, and as an advisor for New Vista Acquisition Corp. He was awarded an honorary Ph.D. from Husson University in 2015, and a second honorary Ph.D. from the University of Maine at Augusta in 2021.

2025 Conference Information and Registration is Now Available

Date: September 30 – October 2, 2025
Location: Overton Hotel & Conference Center, 2322 Mac Davis Lane, Lubbock, TX 79401
Theme: Interstate Advantage: Driving Trade across North America
Registration Costs: $125-Alliance Members; $150 Non-Members; Students $75; Significant Other $75 (Meals only)

Click Here to View/Download 2025 Conference Information

Click Here to Register

Conference Highlights

From Ports-to-Plains to Partners: Advancing Trade through Border Connectivity
Balancing Access and Efficiency: City Location Studies that Drive Trade Forward
Moving the Herd: The Critical Role of Highways in Livestock and Ag Trade
Advantages of the I-27 System Implementation Dashboard
Protecting the Interstate Advantage: Security and Flow at the Frontlines of Trade
Driving Consensus: Public Involvement and the Interstate Advantage
Creating An Advantage Through Feasibility Study
Investing in Advantage: Unlocking Federal Formula Funding for Trade Corridors

Networking Opportunities

Opening Reception: The Texas Tech Club on Tuesday, September 30, 2025
Social and Dinner: Cook's Garage on Wednesday, October 1, 2025
Lunch and Guided Tour: American Windmill Museum on Thursday, October 2, 2025
Guided Tour: FiberMax Center for Discovery on Thursday, October 2, 2025

Sponsorship Opportunities

Show your support for the Ports-to-Plains Alliance!

Recognized on portstoplains.com
Streaming on Home Page for the Event App
Sponsor Recognition including Contact Info and Description on the Event App
Recognition during the Conference
Comped registrations (based on Sponsorship Level)
Many others are described on the Sponsorship Opportunities linked below

Link to Sponsorship Opportunities
Call Tina Scarborough with Questions
806-777-4162

Who is already sponsoring?

Lodging

Overton Hotel & Conference Center, 2322 Mac Davis Lane, Lubbock, TX 79401

Double Queen @ $142 per night
King Room @ $142 per night

Book Online with the Direct Booking Link or by phone with Overton's reservations office by calling 806.776.7000.

**Specify the block name of: “Ports to Plains Annual Conference 2025”

*When you click the link it will take you to the group reservations page. It will automatically put the check in as and check-out date as the two peak nights available in the block (9/30 & 10/1); you will have to adjust the check-in and check-out dates to your desired stay and click UPDATE. Nights for 9/29, 9/30, 10/1 & 10/2 are available in the block.

** Book by September 15^th to get the Ports-to-Plains group rates.

2026 Draft Texas UTP

Most of the current Texas Unified Transportation Program (UTP) projects were authorized in past years and are progressing through the various stages of project development.

Each year, as hundreds of projects exit the development pipeline and enter the construction phase through letting, the UTP authorizes new projects to begin development based on the availability of additional funding in the latest planning forecast. The UTP also authorizes additional funding on near-term projects to enable them to be fully funded for subsequent inclusion in the Statewide Transportation Improvement Plan.

As the outlook for state and federal transportation revenue changes, TxDOT’s forecasted funding may go up or down as a result.
As you can see in the Historical UTP Funding, Forecasted Funding as followed an upward trend, but the Draft FY26 UTP sees a decrease. The decrease stems from a lower projected federal–funding baseline used in the FY26 forecast. New federal forecasts simply anticipate less total funding compared to the prior year.

Compared to the FY25 UTP, the 10-year Financial Forecast for FY26 was a decrease of $3.9 billion.

The good news is that the 10-year forecast is still over $100 billion. As the Ports-to-Plains Alliance began to review the FY26 UTP Projects that benefits the Ports-to-Plains (Future Interstate 27), there was concern that our project funding would decrease. However, instead of a decrease, it was encouraging to see about a $348 million or 16.05 percent increase over the 10-year period.

Here are the highlights from the Draft:

Over $2.5 billion For PTP Projects for the 10-years beginning in FY26
$803.5 million in projects are under Construction along the Corridor

View or Download: FY 2026 UTP Project Totals (Public)
Contains a Sheet for each TxDOT District and a Summary.

Legend

Green in FY 26 Draft UTP
Yellow in FY26 Draft UTP

Armstrong urges strong support for transportation infrastructure in testimony to U.S. Senate committee

Wednesday, July 16, 2025 - North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong testified today before the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, urging lawmakers to maintain robust funding for transportation infrastructure, provide maximum flexibility for states and streamline the permitting and regulatory processes to reduce project delays and costs.

The governor thanked the committee’s chair, Sen. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, and Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, a committee member, for inviting him to testify and offer a state’s point of view during a hearing titled “Constructing the Surface Transportation Reauthorization Bill: Stakeholders’ Perspectives.”

“In rural states like ours, transportation infrastructure isn’t merely about convenience – it’s a pillar of our communities and thriving local economies,” Armstrong testified on behalf of the National Governors Association. “Our highways, roads and bridges are essential lifelines connecting our agricultural producers, energy industry, small businesses and families to markets, health care, education and emergency services.”

“My request for this Committee today is simple: continue providing robust funding, give maximum flexibility to states and watch us go to work,” he continued. “A key piece of ensuring states can successfully and efficiently build projects is formula-based funding. The next highway bill should maintain or increase the percentage of program dollars distributed by formula, allowing states to more quickly deliver critical transportation projects. This is especially important in states like North Dakota that don’t have that long of a construction season.”

Armstrong also urged policymakers to use surface transportation reauthorization to enact bipartisan permitting reform and streamline the permitting process.

“Robust funding is important, but all the money in the world means nothing if it can’t be deployed because of a broken permitting system,” Armstrong stated in his written testimony, adding, “Our current regulatory framework imposes excessive delays and escalating costs, and injects uncertainty into critical infrastructure projects. It also discourages private sector investment, while making federal investment less effective and efficient.”

Armstrong, who served six years as North Dakota’s lone member of Congress before being elected governor last November, said the Senate committee and their House colleagues have “a real opportunity to ensure efficiency, certainty and transparency in the permitting process, all while protecting our environment.”

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“I think if we can find any tools to start some of this funding with the environmental impact study or feasibility studies, I think we could be in line to hopefully get some money that way and move the project farther south,” said Cal Klewin (Executive Director, Theodor Roosevelt Expressway Association).

Federal Requests for FY 2026 Appropriations

The U.S. House Appropriations Committee's full committee markup of the 2026 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) appropriations bill took place on Thursday, July 17, 2025, following the subcommittee markup on Monday, July 14, 2025. The Senate Appropriations Committee's full committee markup of the FY 2026 Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development (THUD) spending bill was held on Thursday, July 24, 2025. The markups included both Community Funding Projects and Congressionally Directed Spending Requests outlined in the June Newsletter. https://www.portstoplains.com/newsletter/june-2025-vol-23-issue-6/.

Each projects submitted received at least partial funding for each project. The graphic below provides a summary of requests, and Appropriations Committee approvals. Eight projects in four states currently total $18,240,000.

Next step would be the approval of the full U.S. Senate and the full U.S. House of Representatives.

Federal Legislative Proposals

Let’s build “Something Big”— the same boldness that built the Interstate System 70 years ago.

With the status quo, while it is nice to be designated as a future interstate highway, the federal funding that was available to build the original Interstate System, is no longer available. States with designated multi-state Interstate Highways, have been left without the same type of federal funding. As a result, not a single multi-state Future Interstate has been completed in the Unted States. We are looking for support to provide state DOTs and Congress with evidence of support, thus the resolution.

Why Organizations Should Consider a Resolution Supporting the Multi-State Future Interstate Highway Formula Program

Take Action: Adopt a resolution urging Congress to include a Multi-State Future Interstate Highway Formula Program in the next Transportation Reauthorization bill.

Download and Adopt a Resolution Supporting the Proposal

Email executed resolutions to: joe.kiely@portstoplains.com

Why It Matters:

Supports Trade: Efficiently connects ports of entry and freight hubs across North America
Drives Economic Growth: Links underserved rural regions to markets and urban centers
Improves Safety & Resilience: Upgrades outdated roadways to modern Interstate standards
National Defense: Strengthens the Strategic Highway Network (STRAHNET)

The United States stands at a crossroads. As our population has doubled, our economy has expanded more than sixty-fold, and trade has surged by 14,700% since the Interstate system began in 1956, the current transportation network no longer matches modern demands. It is time to renew our national vision with a Multi-state Future Interstate Highway Formula Program—a dedicated funding structure to support congressionally designated Future Interstates essential to freight, trade, and rural connectivity.

There is currently no dedicated federal funding to plan and construct Future Interstate Highways. The purpose of Future Interstate Highways is to expand and enhance the national transportation network by identifying and developing key corridors that will eventually meet full Interstate Highway standards. Designated Multi-state Future Interstate Highways serve a National Vison.

Formula Funding to be:

Distributed to State DOTs based on the number of unconstructed, multi-state designated Future Interstate miles in each state
Formula Funding must be used to Plan, Develop and Construct Multi-state Future Interstate Highways
Exclude funds from the state’s Highway Trust Fund Rate of Return calculation
Allow states to determine annual priorities for corridor development
Guarantee a federal commitment to completing congressionally authorized Future Interstates

Despite the authorization of a 40,000-mile Interstate Highway System by Congress in 1944 and the initial designation of 37,700 miles in 1947, the total constructed mileage has significantly fallen short of long-term national mobility demands. Incremental additions to the Interstate Highway System brought the system to approximately 42,700 miles in the 1990s, 46,747 miles by the early 2000s, and over 48,000 miles in the 2020s. The modest mileage growth of interstate highways over the past four decades reflects the need for renewed federal commitment to expanding and modernizing the Interstate System to meet 21st-century transportation, economic, and security challenges.

The purpose of Future Interstate Highways is to expand and enhance the national transportation network by identifying and developing key corridors that will eventually meet full Interstate Highway standards, with the goal of supporting 1) National Connectivity; 2) Freight and Economic Development; (3) Cross-Border Trade and International Commerce; 4) National Defense and Emergency Preparedness; and 5) Transportation Modernization. Not a single multi-state Future Interstate has been competed in the United States.

Communities, chambers, counties, MPOs, and transportation coalitions across the country are uniting to call for a dedicated funding mechanism to complete these vital corridors. Let’s build what’s next—with the same boldness that built the Interstate System 70 years ago.