Local Infrastructure Hub

Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG): Implementation
2024-04-01
Notice of Funding Opportunity: Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG): Implementation
Agency: Environmental Protection Agency
Program Description: Funding to implement greenhouse gas reduction policies, projects, and procedures
Funding Details: Provides $250M for noncompetitive planning grants, and approximately $4.6B for competitive implementation grants

Safe Streets for All: Technologies for Tracking Near-Misses
2024-03-20 14:00 - 15:00 (America/New_York)
The Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) awarded $895 million to 620 communities for safety projects and strategies. Many of these winning proposals incorporated new technologies for assessing safety challenges. This session will investigate how cities across the country are using SS4A funding to deploy new data capture technologies including cameras, drones, and LiDAR to detect near-misses and other high-risk incidents, and predictive analysis tools to inform street design and transportation planning.
Questions to be answered include:

What are the most important technologies cities should consider as tools to advance Vision Zero and similar road safety commitments?
How have cities successfully incorporated these technologies into their Planning and Demonstration proposals?
What safety assessment technologies are eligible for funding through the SS4A Planning and Demonstration grants?

Electrifying your Fleet
2024-03-19 14:00 - 15:00
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act provide several funding opportunities for reducing or eliminating greenhouse gas emissions from city and school buses, heavy duty vehicles and other public transit systems, as well as transitioning to zero emission ports. This webinar will explore the various programs that cities can blend and braid to green their fleets.

No-Emission Buses: How American Cities Are Driving Innovations in Vehicle Technology, Charging Infrastructure, and Technician Training
2024-02-28 14:00 - 15:00
U.S. DOT recently announced more than 130 awards totaling some $1.7 billion for low- and no-emission buses and bus facilities. Vehicle technology is driving these investments—more than 1,800 zero-emission buses have been funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. But cities are also using federal infrastructure funding to deploy new charging technologies in depots and along routes, and improve the resilience of transit systems’ electric power supplies.
In this session, cities will learn about future funding opportunities through the FTA’s Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities and Low- and No-Emission (Low-No) Vehicle programs, and lessons learned from cities’ successful FY2023 proposals.

Lessons Learned from Recycling Grant Recipients
2024-02-27 14:00 - 15:00
Solid Waste Infrastructure for Recycling (SWIFR) grants are a new program created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to improve community infrastructure for recycling and other post-consumer materials management, implement circular economy strategies, and improve local waste management systems, particularly in disadvantaged communities.
In the fall of 2023, the EPA announced the first round of grant winners; this webinar will feature grant winners to discuss their projects and process for creating a successful application.

Making Electric Vehicle Charging and Alternative Fueling the New Infrastructure Standard (CFI)
2024-02-13 14:00 - 15:00
BIL made large investments in charging and fueling infrastructure to accelerate the shift towards electric vehicles and alternative fueling. This webinar will feature FY22/23 grant winners and discuss successful strategies for obtaining CFI grants in advance of the anticipated second round of CFI funding.
Featured speakers will include Gabriel Klein, Executive Director of the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation; Matt Stephens-Rich, Director of Technical Services, Electrification Coalition; and Mayor Andy Schor of Lansing, MI.

From Pilot to Scale: The role of technology pilots in federal infrastructure funding
2024-01-31 14:00 - 15:00
Over the last decade, cities and agencies across the country have set up innovation teams, which play a core role in helping local governments pilot new technology.
This session will provide a “how to” guide for standing up an innovation team, including the strategic and legal infrastructure for running technology pilots related to the built environment in your city. It will then cover how to use data derived from technology pilots to improve your application for federal funding, and how Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds can help scale projects from “pilot” to “proven.”
We will hear lessons learned from the City of Long Beach and the Port Authority, who have spent the last five years growing their innovation capabilities. Each will get into the details of how they built an innovation culture–what has worked, and what has not—and how they are trying to use pilots to pursue Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding opportunities.

Planning Safe Streets for All
2024-01-30 14:00 - 15:00
This webinar will feature mayors from cities that won Safe Streets for All demonstration grants to encourage additional cities to apply for demonstration grants in the upcoming funding announcement. City leaders will discuss their plans preventing roadway fatalities and reducing the rate of serious injuries for pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists.

Faster, Safer, Smarter, Fairer: Evaluating key tech for transportation projects
2023-12-20 14:00 - 15:00
With more than $60m in annual funding under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Federal Highway Administration’s Advanced Transportation Technology and Innovation (ATTAIN) program is taking on the challenge of delivering safer and more efficient transportation to areas of persistent poverty—not only on highways but transit systems, too.
This session will explore how cities can take advantage of ATTAIN funding for congestion pricing systems, mobility-on-demand solutions, and transportation service payment systems integrations to advance their shared mobility goals. We’ll take a deep dive into California Department of Transportation’s FY2022 ATTAIN award, which will expand the Southern California Mobility Wallet project, which offers seamless payment for highway and transit services for Los Angeles County residents.
Questions to be answered include:

How does “open-loop” payments technology work, and what are the benefits?
How can cities work with state DOTs to partner and develop competitive proposals for ATTAIN?
How can cities navigate the FHWA application and review process, and how is it different from more familiar agency processes such as the FTA?

Speakers Include:

Gillian Gillett, Chief, Data and Digital Services Division and Program Manager, California Integrated Mobility, California Department of Transportation
Hunter Owens, Research Data Manager, Data and Digital Services, California Department of Transportation
Benjamin De La Peña, CEO, Shared-Use Mobility Center

Gearing up for Climate Pollution Reduction Grants
2023-12-14 14:00 - 15:00
The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) program provides $5 billion in grants to develop and implement ambitious plans for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other harmful air pollution.
Forty-six states and over seventy-five metropolitan areas have received CPRG planning grants and will soon be submitting their Priority Climate Action Plans in the lead up to implementation. This webinar will discuss how cities can partner with grantees as they develop these plans.

IRA: Putting Direct Pay into Action
2023-12-12 14:00 - 15:00
Cities can use IRA Direct Pay to finance a variety of projects that improve residents’ air quality and reduce greenhouse gasses, among other benefits. These include: greening buses, ambulances, and other public vehicles; investing in community solar projects or transitioning municipal buildings to solar power; transitioning municipal utilities to renewable energy sources; or creating electric vehicle charging infrastructure. This webinar will explore the types of projects that IRA Direct Pay can help finance and bring to fruition faster.

Cybersecurity for Cities: A Bootstrapping Guide
2023-11-29 14:00 - 15:00
City governments face a growing array of threats from cyberattacks targeting city-owned and operated information systems. But even more worrisome, as cities shift to cloud-based IT solutions for everyday tools and integrate “smart” capabilities into IIJA-funded infrastructure systems, software supply chains are becoming increasingly complex. Critical information systems used by cities often depend on integrations with third-party components and services whose risks are poorly understood.

Grant Application Strategies for Capacity Constrained Communities
2023-11-28 14:00 - 15:00
Join us to hear about key insights from DOT Capacity Builder Program leaders on the challenges and opportunities that exist for small communities in both securing and implementing BIL and IRA competitive grant funds. Also learn from small communities that have achieved outsized success as they share their stories and lessons learned.

Communicating Your City’s Infrastructure Vision to Residents
2023-11-14 14:00 - 15:00
Promoting the Impact of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law: Join mayors, communications experts, and leaders in infrastructure to discuss advancements made possible by BIL and insights on how to share infrastructure successes with your residents.

Raising the Bar: Funding Sustainable & Equitable Transportation
2023-10-24 14:00 - 15:00
Join the Local Infrastructure Hub on Tuesday, October 24, at 2pm ET — Raising the Bar: Funding Sustainable and Equitable Transportation. We’ll be joined by Shailen Bhatt, Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA); Andrea Jacobson, Program Manager for RAISE, U.S. Department of Transportation; Mayor Barbara Buffaloe of Columbia, MO; Mayor Fred Teague of Russellville, AR, and; Shane Creech, Director of Public Works for the City of Columbia, MO, to discuss the RAISE program and best practices for advancing sustainable and equitable transportation projects. Register today!

How Digital Twins Can Help Cities Build Resilience
2023-10-11 14:00 - 15:00
“Digital twins” are predictive, 3-D models of urban systems that can help cities identify critical points of failure, target the most vulnerable populations, and prioritize how they deploy their resources before, during, and after crises. In anticipation of a new round of hazard mitigation grants under FEMA’s Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program, this Technology and Innovation Center webinar focuses on two digital twin pilots undertaken by the City of Austin. Participants will hear from Austin city leaders about how these solutions are helping model smoke clouds from building and wildfires, and optimize workflows and layouts inside a new emergency operations center, and how the city structures its partnership with university-based researchers.
Questions to be answered include:
• What are digital twins, and how do they differ from dashboards and other tools cities have?
• How can digital twins help cities assess, mitigate, and manage risks from natural and manmade hazards?
• What skills and capacities are needed to design, deploy, and make effective decisions with digital twins?

Investing in Resilient Communities
2023-10-10 14:00 - 15:00
Join federal policy experts, Mayors, and leaders in the field to discuss the best practices for building resilient infrastructure in the face of climate change and extreme weather events.

Rebooting Your Energy Code
2023-09-27 14:00 - 15:00
The IIJA and IRA provide a historic opportunity to update state and city buildings codes to meet modern energy efficiency standards. This session focuses on current and future funding opportunities from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), aimed at helping cities update their building codes. We will also hear from Fort Collins, a recipient of the DOE’s Resilient and Efficient Building Code grant.

Bridging the Gap: Funding Broadband for All
2023-09-26 14:00 - 15:00
Join the Local Infrastructure Hub to discuss the BEAD program and how you can submit a competitive application to expand broadband access in your community. Featured speakers include Evan Feinman, Deputy Associate Administrator for Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment; Mayors; and Kathryn de Wit, Project Director of Broadband Access Initiative at The Pew Charitable Trusts. Register today!

A SMART Approach to Road Innovation
2023-09-12 14:00 - 15:00
Join the Local Infrastructure Hub to discuss the best strategies for improving transportation safety and efficiency for your residents. Featured speakers include Ben Levine, Senior Advisor, Research & Technology, USDOT; Mayor Justin Bibb of Cleveland, OH ; Mayor Jeni Arndt of Fort Collins, CO; Mayor Craig Greenberg of Louisville, KY; and Karina Ricks, Partner, Cityfy. Register today!

Partnerships for Advancing Clean Water Infrastructure
2023-08-08 14:00 - 15:00
Join federal environmental policy experts, Mayors, and leaders in the field to discuss the best strategies for working with your state’s leadership to enhance your cities water quality infrastructure.

Reconnecting Communities for Economic Mobility
2023-07-25 14:00 - 15:00
The Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods (RCN) Grant Program through USDOT — funded with $3.2 billion over the next 5 years — is the first-ever federal program designed to reconnect communities that were previously cut off from economic opportunities by transportation infrastructure. Join us on Tuesday, July 25, alongside Christopher Coes, Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy at the U.S. Department of Transportation; Mayor Regina Romero of Tucson, AZ; Mayor Layne Wilkerson of Frankfort, KY; and Mayor David Anderson of Kalamazoo, MI to highlight winning projects from the 2022 grant cycle and discuss best practices for cities applying in 2023.

Coding the Curb: Winning Solutions from the 2022 SMART Grant Program
2023-07-20 14:00 - 15:00
Curbs are one of the most important, yet undervalued asset in the urban public realm. As cities confront new patterns of activity, new demands on the public right of way, and fiscal and environmental challenges, curbs are a critical platform for driving change.
The second of two Technology + Innovation Center webinars highlighting awards from the 2022 Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grants Program, this webinar looks at how cities are deploying a variety of approaches to developing curb data platforms. Questions to be answered include:

What are the short- and long-term goals of curb coding efforts?
What data do cities plan to collect? How will it be used, what value is created, and how will it be managed?
What core technologies and data standards are available and what must be developed?
How will cities incentivize various stakeholders to participate?
Who does what? How are cities enlisting vendors and other partners to design, deploy and operate these solutions?

Navigating IRA Tax Credits for Local Leaders
2023-07-18 14:00 - 15:00
Join The Local Infrastructure Hub on Tuesday, July 18 at 2 p.m. ET to learn more about Inflation Reduction Act tax credits and the benefits that they will bring to your residents. IRA contains several tax credits in service of increasing America’s competitiveness in the clean energy economy. Featured speakers include Laurel Blatchford, Chief Implementation Officer, Inflation Reduction Act, US Department of Treasury; John Podesta, Senior Adviser to the President for Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation; Alexander Dane, Senior Manager for Clean Energy Innovation & Partnerships, World Resources Institute; and Mayor Erin Mendenhall of Salt Lake City, UT.

Digitizing the Last Mile: How SMART Grant Winners Are Modernizing Urban Freight Management
2023-06-28 14:00 - 15:00
The first of two Technology + Innovation Center webinars highlighting technology and innovation awards made through US DOT’s 2022 SMART Grants Program, this webinar will explore the solutions for urban freight management in U.S. cities.
The pandemic dramatically accelerated the growth of goods moving on city streets as people shifted to online shopping. These freight flows, focused on rapid delivery within residential areas, are different from anything cities have encountered before. And they have created enormous challenges for cities’ efforts to improve safety, manage congestion, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Protecting our Nation's Transportation System
2023-06-20 14:00 - 15:00
On the 1 year anniversary of the Local Infrastructure Hub, join federal transportation policy experts, Mayors, and leaders in the field to discuss the best strategies for tackling climate change by improving the resilience of the surface transportation system.

Putting ARPA Funds into Action
2023-06-14 16:00 - 17:00
While SLFRF funds were not affected by the debt ceiling agreement, cities have strategic interests in obligating and spending the awarded funds quickly. Yet, many cities have not been able to spend much of their federal funds so far. As cities navigate the many challenges of accessing and spending federal funding, our experts are available to share best practices on obligating and spending SLFRF funds strategically and expeditiously.

Advancing Workforce Equity in BIL
2023-05-16 14:00 - 15:00
This session will discuss workforce development provisions in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, with a focus on empowering cities to promote equity in infrastructure. Featured speakers include Paige Shevlin, Strategic Advisor for Infrastructure Workforce Development, U.S. Department of Transportation, Darrell Byers, CEO, Interise, and mayors.
Webinar Resources

Webinar Recording
5 Winning Strategies for Incorporating Workforce Provisions in BIL Projects

Tech and Innovation Center Series
2023-05-10 14:00 - 15:00
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provides more than $65 billion for broadband infrastructure. The bulk of these funds will be administered by state governments. With states finalizing Five-Year Action Plans for federal review, cities are preparing for these new opportunities to expand access to reliable, affordable, high-speed internet service. This session will provide a deep dive into strategies cities can use to make the most of these funding opportunities:

What kinds of broadband technologies and networks are eligible for funding, and what innovative approaches to future-proofing these investments are available?
What data should cities invest to maximize access to and impact of broadband funds as state plans roll out? How can cities use these data to evaluate state investments?
States seeking Digital Equity funds are required to develop digital equity plans. Do cities need their own digital equity plans?
What opportunities exist for combining and layering multiple programs and sources of broadband funding to maximize impact?
What innovative approaches to funding broadband investments for multi-family housing are available?

Safe Streets and Roads for All: Insights from 2022 Winners
2023-05-09 14:00 - 15:00
Join The Local Infrastructure Hub on Tuesday, May 9 at 2 p.m. ET. for the next session – Safe Streets and Roads for All: Insights from 2022 Winners. As cities prepare to apply for the 2023 Safe Streets and Roads for All grant opportunity, this session will highlight winning projects from 2022 and provide insights to future applicants. Our federal experts and local leaders will share best practices and lessons learned with participants. Featured speakers include Emily Schweninger, Policy Advisor for Safety, U.S. Department of Transportation; Mayor Jane Castor of Tampa, FL; Mayor Frank Cownie of Des Moines, IA; Mayor Martha Guerrero of West Sacramento, CA; and Ryan Russo, Principal, Together Projects LLC!
