Government Relations

CLICK HERE FOR ASCE REGION 9 LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

To learn more about our Government Relations Committee, please read the attached policies and procedures in the committee files section of this page.  If you are interested in participating in this committee, please contact [email protected].

See Related News below for more details about recent Government Relations Committee activities.

Member Resources

• ASCE Washington, DC Legislative Fly-In
• ASCE Key Contact Program
• California's 2019 Infrastructure Report Card
• Orange County's 2016 Infrastructure Report Card

2022 National Legislative Fly-In

ASCE’s delegation of 225 members from 48 states flew into Washington DC to attend the 2022 Legislative Fly-in on March 2-3. The delegates included 21 people from California’s Region 9, where our team got the opportunity to discuss current legislative issues, the omnibus budget bill to get IIJA moving, how the legislature should incentivize agencies to spend money from IIJA, several additional acts to authorize funding, and rejecting the gas tax holiday bill currently sitting in the Senate. 

The team was able to talk with people around the country to hear about engineering trends that are impacted by their legislatures, and hear how leadership in Washington is working on improving infrastructure and “Building Back Better.”  Speakers included ASCE president Dennis Truax, Senator Rob Portman of Ohio, and Dr. Geraldine Richmond (Undersecretary for the Department of Energy). 

After all of the briefing and learning about the government’s impact on infrastructure, it was time to get to work.  ASCE’s Region 9 met with Senator Alex Padilla and ten of California’s Representatives to discuss these issues and provide information to help the legislature staff make informed decisions.  In the end, our team learned that messaging backed with data from a legislature’s constituents is the best way to impact and make a change when interacting with a legislature’s staff.

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act

2021 was a major year for securing long-term funding for major infrastructure.  Orange County’s impact under IIJA will have OCTA receive $475M in transit funding over the next five years (largely going into bus and bus facilities), $500M in highway formula funding, and $100M in competitive funds for zero-emission bus programs or streetcar initiatives.  There will also be some funding for electric vehicle charging.  There have been no projects directly identified to date that would take on these funds.    

In total California is expected to receive about $44.56 billion in guaranteed funding according to the Administration. This estimate is based on the allocation of funds in prior bills and leaves out competitive grant programs.  Of that funding, $3.5 billion is expected for water, $9.5 billion for transit, $4.2 billion for bridges, and $25.3 billion for highways.  The following graphic shows the national breakdown of funds. 

California's Infrastructure Scores a C-

The 2019 Infrastructure Report Card: This report assigns a letter grade to each category and to the overall report card, to more effectively communicate the general state of our California infrastructure to state and local legislators, as well as to the public. The 2019 California Infrastructure Report Card gave the overall infrastructure a grade of C-, which means California’s infrastructure is in mediocre condition and requires attention. Click on the graphic below to find out where we’ve improved, where we’ve slipped, and learn about how we can improve going forward.

America's Infrastructure Scores a C-

Every four years, the American Society of Civil Engineers’ Report Card for America’s Infrastructure depicts the condition and performance of American infrastructure in the familiar form of a school report card—assigning letter grades based on the physical condition and needed investments for improvement.

The 2021 Infrastructure Report Card: Grades are in and America’s cumulative infrastructure GPA is a C-. For the first time in 20 years, our infrastructure GPA is a C-, up from a D+ in 2017. This is good news and an indication we’re headed in the right direction, but a lot of work remains. Click on the graphic below to find out where we’ve improved, where we’ve slipped, and learn about how we can improve going forward. InfrastructureReportCard.org/Solutions

ASCE Legislative Fly-In 2019 (Washington, D.C.) 

(Left to right) ASCE OC Government Committee Members MJ Hashemi, Lenard Tran, Kenneth Rosenfield, and Adeleine Tran advocating on behalf of our nation’s infrastructure!

ASCE Region 9 was awarded the 2019 Outstanding Civil Engineer Advocate of the Year! Congratulations to our ASCE OC's own Elizabeth Ruedas, Adeleine Tran, Lenard Tran, Kenneth Rosenfield, and MJ Hashemi!

ASCE Region 9 Legislative Fly-In 2018 (Sacramento, CA)

ASCE OC Members at the State Capitol Grounds.

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