House committee proposes annual $250 fee for EVs

Shoring up the Highway Trust Fund with annual federal registration fees for electric and hybrid vehicles is part of the Transportation & Infrastructure Committee’s budget reconciliation proposal.

By Dan Zukowski • April 30, 2025

DOT will cut funds to transportation projects with DEI: Duffy

The U.S. transportation secretary also told funding recipients that they need to cooperate with immigration officers or potentially face civil or criminal prosecution.

By Julie Strupp • April 30, 2025

Mayors push back against Trump’s new ‘sanctuary cities’ order

Forcing local police departments to enforce immigration policy will make cities less safe, they say.

By Robyn Griggs Lawrence • April 29, 2025

Jacksonville, Florida, city council members launch their own DOGE committee

Some residents question the motivation behind the effort to cut $50 million from the city budget and make local government more efficient.

By Danielle McLean • April 25, 2025

Justice Department cancels hundreds of public safety grants

The move will impede progress that’s been made on deterring crime, the U.S. Conference of Mayors says, calling for the grants’ reinstatement.  

By Robyn Griggs Lawrence • April 24, 2025

DOT threatens NY highway funds if congestion pricing continues

The Trump administration set a May 21 deadline for New York state to end its tolling plan for Manhattan.

By Dan Zukowski • April 23, 2025

Trump administration takes control of $7B Penn Station redevelopment

Neither the MTA nor the U.S. Department of Transportation has disclosed how the takeover will affect project timelines or ongoing construction activity at the site.

By Sebastian Obando • April 22, 2025

Judge unfreezes billions in IRA, IIJA funds

The temporary injunction resumes public health, clean air and climate-resilience efforts halted by Trump’s executive order.

By Robyn Griggs Lawrence • April 16, 2025

ICE agents denied entry into LAUSD elementary schools

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security maintains the incidents, which rattled the education community, were "wellness checks on children who arrived unaccompanied at the border." 

By Naaz Modan • April 16, 2025

Authorium steps into growing field of AI-supported government procurement products

Authorium's new AI tool was trained on 15 million government procurement documents and can generate statements of work “in minutes," the company says.

By Ryan Kushner • April 14, 2025

Maryland officials failed to test Key Bridge vulnerability

The National Transportation Safety Board said the span was nearly 30 times above the acceptable risk threshold and urged owners to evaluate 68 older bridges across the country.

By Zachary Phillips • March 21, 2025

Nearly 3,000 city leaders gathered in Washington last week. Here’s what they had to say.

Mayors, council members and nonprofit leaders heard from Vice President JD Vance, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and others at the National League of Cities meeting.

By Dan Zukowski • March 21, 2025

Can USDOT kill California high-speed rail?

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told the Federal Railroad Administration to review the Los Angeles-to-San Francisco project with an eye toward clawing back $4 billion in federal funds.

By Dan Zukowski • March 20, 2025

EPA to review ‘waters of the U.S.’ rule

The rule defines which wetlands or bodies of water fall under the Clean Water Act. The three previous presidential administrations have adjusted its scope.

By Mary Salmonsen • March 19, 2025

City leaders name housing, public safety and infrastructure as top issues

The National League of Cities Congressional City Conference brought together 3,000 city leaders to discuss these issues, with appearances from EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and Vice President JD Vance.

By Dan Zukowski • March 18, 2025

Up to $51B in transportation grant awards at risk, advocacy group says

Transportation for America analyzed a leaked Department of Transportation policy memo that targets road safety, bicycle and electric vehicle infrastructure projects.

By Dan Zukowski • March 17, 2025

JD Vance calls for zoning, regulation reform to improve housing affordability

Vice President JD Vance, speaking at the National League of Cities Congressional City Conference, also blamed immigrants for competing with U.S. citizens for housing.

By Dan Zukowski • March 13, 2025

EPA revisiting dozens of climate, environment rules in ‘day of deregulation’

The agency said it would roll back a range of rules and programs, including some that are foundational to its efforts to address climate change. A new WOTUS definition is expected, as well as rollbacks to an emissions reporting program.

By Jacob Wallace • March 13, 2025

New approaches to procurement can drive innovation in public transit

The lengthy process from RFP to equipment delivery can result in trains that are already obsolete when they go into service. New technologies and procurement approaches could help.

By Gabriel J. Lopez-Bernal • March 13, 2025

Mayors condemn ongoing federal funding freeze

Infrastructure, child care, Meals on Wheels and after-school programs are among those impacted, elected officials and nonprofit leaders said at a National League of Cities meeting this week.

By Dan Zukowski • March 12, 2025

Local government impacts of President Trump’s first 50 days

President Donald Trump wasted no time in canceling or halting many of former President Biden’s initiatives that provided support to local governments. State, city and nonprofit leaders are turning to the courts to fight back.

By Smart Cities Dive Staff • March 11, 2025

US DOT asks DC transportation authorities to focus on cutting crime

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy directed Amtrak, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority and the District Department of Transportation to report and take action to improve safety.

By Dan Zukowski • March 7, 2025

DOT funding priorities benefit Whiter, wealthier communities: Urban Institute

A plan to tie funding to marriage and birth rates would leave behind historically underserved communities, according to an Urban Institute analysis.

By Kalena Thomhave • Feb. 25, 2025

FTA postpones enforcement of state safety oversight rule for rail transit

Though the rule was effective Jan. 1, the Federal Transit Administration is  postponing enforcement to March 20 in line with a Jan. 20 executive order.

By Dan Zukowski • Feb. 25, 2025

23 AGs line up behind Baltimore in CFPB case

Efforts to shutter the agency are against public interest, the AGs said. The CFPB’s attorneys argue it’s in the public interest to act “consistent[ly] with the philosophy of a new administration brought about by a national election."

By Dan Ennis • Feb. 25, 2025