1.3.2 Legislation and Regulations

Federal Legislation

The transportation authorization legislation Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) signed into law in 2012 includes a number of provisions related to asset management and performance management for both highway and transit modes. The requirements established in MAP-21 were continued in the subsequent legislation Fixing America First Act (FAST) signed into law in 2015. For the highway mode MAP-21 defines asset management in the context of transportation and requires that State DOTs develop risk-based transportation asset management plans (TAMPs) for assets on the National Highway System (NHS). The law also includes a number of requirements related to performance management. Regarding transit MAP-21 requires that U.S. transit agencies develop TAMPs that detail asset conditions and include a prioritized list of state of good repair (SGR) investments.

Following passage of MAP-21 and FAST the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) developed rules detailing the TAM requirements for highways and transit, respectively. In 2016 FHWA finalized § 23 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 515 – Asset Management Plans. FHWA’s requirements specify that a TAMP should detail asset inventory, current conditions, and predicted future conditions over a 10-year period, using performance measures detailed in FHWA’s performance management regulations. The TAMP should include the following elements:

• Asset Management Objectives
• Asset Management Measures and Targets
• Inventory and Conditions
• Performance Gap Identification
• Life-Cycle Planning
• Risk Management Analysis
• Financial Plan
• Investment Strategies

In 2016, the FTA finalized asset management requirements U.S. transit agencies must follow. These requirements are detailed in §49 CFR Parts 625 and 630. The FTA requirements detail that transit agencies must prepare TAMPs covering a four-year period and including their revenue vehicles, infrastructure, facilities, and equipment (including service vehicles). Agencies must use a decision support tool to help analyze SGR investment needs and develop a prioritized list of needs. Larger agencies (with rail systems and/or 100 or more vehicles in peak revenue service) must include additional materials in their TAMP, such as a TAM/SGR policy, TAM implementation strategy, evaluation plan, and identification of resources required to implement the plan.

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act/Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (IIJA/BIL) that took effect on October 1, 2021 required State DOTs to consider extreme weather and resilience as part of the life-cycle planning and risk management analyses within a State TAMP. This means that state DOTs must take into account the potential for extreme weather events, such as hurricanes, floods, and wildfires, when making decisions about how to maintain and invest in their transportation infrastructure. This change is important because it will better inform the decision-making of State DOTs and other Federal-aid recipients who ultimately select projects in which to invest federal-aid dollars to improve the resilience of the surface transportation network. These updates were first required in 2022 as State DOT updated their TAMP development processes and TAMPs based on the 4-year cycle in Title 23, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part 515.13(c).

The IIJA/BIL also provides funding for a number of new programs that are relevant to transportation asset management, such as the Bridge Investment Program and the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program. These programs can help state DOTs to make necessary repairs and upgrades to their transportation infrastructure, and to invest in new technologies that can make their transportation systems more sustainable and resilient.

In addition, the IIJA/BIL includes a number of provisions that are designed to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of state DOT transportation asset management programs. These provisions include requirements for state DOTs to develop and implement asset management plans, to collect and use data to inform their asset management decisions, and to collaborate with other stakeholders on asset management issues.

The most recent information on federal requirements and regulations are available at the following:

FHWA Transportation Asset Management: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/asset/

FTA Transit Asset Management: https://www.transit.dot.gov/TAM