The U.S. Department of Transportation announced it has published a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for $1.5 billion in grant funding through the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) discretionary grant program for 2024.

The program helps communities around the country carry out projects with significant local or regional impact. 

How RAISE Discretionary Grants Help

RAISE discretionary grants help project sponsors at the state and local levels, including municipalities, Tribal governments, counties, and others complete critical freight and passenger transportation infrastructure projects.

The eligibility requirements of RAISE allow project sponsors to obtain funding for projects that may be harder to support through other USDOT grant programs. 

Recent examples of funded projects include a grade separation project in Chula Vista, California, a new downtown transit center in New Orleans, and reconstruction of Route 6 on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in South Dakota.

“Across the country, I have seen firsthand how projects funded by our RAISE program are helping communities realize long-held dreams and well-planned visions for better infrastructure,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.“Thanks to President Biden’s leadership, we are delivering safer, cleaner infrastructure to communities of every size and in every part of the country, creating a new generation of jobs and helping families build generational wealth in the process.”

RAISE Projects

In 2023, RAISE funding supported 162 projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

RAISE projects are reviewed and evaluated on statutory criteria of safety, environmental sustainability, quality of life, mobility and community connectivity, economic competitiveness and opportunity including tourism, state of good repair, partnership and collaboration, and innovation. 

Additionally, projects designated “RCN Program Extra” during the new FY 2023 Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods (RCN) Program competition and submitted for consideration under the FY 2024 RAISE NOFO will have an opportunity to be advanced during the FY 2024 RAISE evaluation process, as described in the NOFO.  

Half of the funding will go to projects in rural areas, and half of the funding will go to projects in urban areas. At least $15 million in funding is guaranteed to go towards projects located in Areas of Persistent Poverty or Historically Disadvantaged Communities, and projects located in these areas will be eligible for up to 100% federal cost share, as directed by Congress in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. 

USDOT said it intends to use the RAISE program to support lowering costs for household budgets, wealth creation and the creation of good-paying jobs with the free and fair choice to join a union, the incorporation of strong labor standards, and training and placement programs, especially registered apprenticeships. 

The deadline for applications is 11:59 p.m. EST on February 28, 2024, and selections will be announced no later than June 27, 2024.